


In Regards to Love, Play

by trashonly



Category: No Game No Life - Kamiya Yuu, Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: BAMF Katsuki Yuuri, BAMF Victor Nikiforov, Character's Name Spelled as Viktor, Confident Katsuki Yuuri, Established Relationship, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, alternate universe - no game no life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-24
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:48:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 46,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24326020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trashonly/pseuds/trashonly
Summary: Yuuri and Viktor are the top gamers in the world as Eros and Agape. Together, they form the unbeatable team Love. Bored of the world they live in, they are given a chance to enter the world of Disboard, a world where all murder and robbery is forbidden and conflict is determined by games. Together, they are determined to conquer the world and defeat the Gods of Play.Or,Yuuri and Viktor conquer Disboard with the power of love and friendship.No Game No Life AU with Yuuri on Ice characters.
Relationships: Katsuki Yuuri/Victor Nikiforov, Phichit Chulanont/Lee Seung Gil
Comments: 13
Kudos: 93





	1. Chapter 1 - Viktor

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [checkmate](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11585532) by [silencedmockingjay](https://archiveofourown.org/users/silencedmockingjay/pseuds/silencedmockingjay). 



> Basically I love the plot/concept of No Game No life but the characters leave much to be desired. Luckily, I love all the characters in Yuri on Ice and saw that someone wrote a really good fic with this concept, unfortunately unfinished. It's only one chapter, but they also wrote a really good (completed) prequel. Please check out their work above!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Viktor and Yuuri meet the Gods of Play and enter the world of Disboard.

**Viktor and Yuuri's Apartment, Tokyo, Japan**

“Well, we won.” Viktor let out a groan, throwing his head back. He lifted his arms in a stretch, leaning back on his computer chair. He blinked a few times, his eyes tired from staring at the six computer screens in front of him for who knows how long now.

Yuuri let out a grunt of acknowledgement, eyes still focused on the cup of ramen he was currently eating. Viktor frowned at the lack of attention, tuning his head to look at his boyfriend. He was sitting on the ground, leaning up against Viktor’s chair, while using his feet to maneuver the controller on the floor.

“Will you stop that?” Viktor wrinkled his nose. “That’s unsanitary!”

Yuuri merely cocked an eyebrow at him. “That's not what you said about my feet last night,” he deadpanned.

Viktor sputtered, face flooding red in embarrassment. “Yuuri!” he whined.

His boyfriend snickered and held up a bag of chips, a silent olive branch. Grudgingly, Viktor accepted it, still pouting.

“Next round,” Yuuri said, tossing back the nearly empty cup of ramen.

“Want a pillow?” Viktor asked. Yuuri mumbled a negative, eyes already fixed on the screens in front of him. Viktor shrugged and turned his attention back to his own screens; Yuuri would often find the most uncomfortable positions to sit in.

“I should really stop eating these,” Yuuri said with a sigh, tossing the cup with a growing pile of other eaten ramen cups in the trash can. “I’ll get fat if I don’t stop.”

“You’re beautiful just the way you are, my little piggy,” Viktor said, automatically. “What time is it, anyways?”

“Umm.” Yuuri spared a glance upwards. The glow of the clock was one of the few things illuminated in the dark bedroom. “Eight PM- wait, no, AM.”

“What day?”

“Does it matter?”

“Yes, it matters!” Viktor insisted, still laser focused in on the game in front of him. “It’s so we can know when the events and tournaments are coming up- wait a minute!” His head snapped to the side, fingers never stopping their assault on the keyboard. Yuuri was slumped on the floor, snoring softly.

“Yuuri!” Viktor cried out.

“Sleepy,” his boyfriend groaned. “It’s been five days.”

“Yuuri, if you fall asleep now I won’t have a healer!” Viktor whined. “Just hold on a little longer, please, for me, darling?”

Yuuri lifted his head, blinking behind his glasses blearily. For a moment, Viktor was hopeful that he would pick up the controllers and continue playing. Then, Yuuri placed each controller under both of Viktor’s feet.

“Here,” Yuuri said with a cute yawn. “You’ve got this, babe. Good night.” With that, he fell flat onto the bed and passed out.

“Yuuri?” Viktor yelped, suddenly overwhelmed with the responsibility of controlling four characters at the same time. “Yuuri!”

The only response he received were snores.

* * *

There was a yawn, signaling Yuuri's awakening from his power nap. 

“Hey, Viktor,” he mumbled, trying to get his attention.

Viktor had his forehead lying flat on his desk. “Not now, Yuuri,” he said, with a pout. “I won against twelve-hundred players, for the both of us. Give me a minute, will you?”

“You’ve got an email,” Yuuri told him.

Viktor blinked. “From who?”

“I don’t know,” Yuuri said. “From a friend, maybe?”

“Whose?”

A pause, then, “Well, I guess it can’t be yours, since you don’t have any. Must be for me, then," Yuuri said, dryly.

“Ouch.” Viktor pouted. “So mean, Yuuri.”

Yuuri didn’t respond, instead making a noise of confusion. He lifted up the iPad to show him.

**TO: Love**

**FROM: Unknown**

**Have you two ever felt like you were born into the wrong world?**

**http://www.disboard-the-boardtop-world.info**

“What is this?” Viktor asked, confused. 

“Dunno,” Yuuri said, peeking over his shoulder. He yawned again, the nap clearly not having been enough. “Could be spam.”

“Or a virus,” Viktor agreed.

“And how do they know there’s two of us?”

“Could be dangerous.”

They looked at each other and shrugged.

“Click on it,” they decided together.

Viktor pulled up the email on his computer and clicked on the link, opening up a webpage to a chessboard with the word “WELCOME” splashed on top of it.

“Huh?” Yuuri peeked over his shoulder, curious now. “Chess?”

Viktor stood, feeling the blood rushing to his legs for the first time in hours. He stretched some more, popping the joints. “Well, I guess I’ll give you the chair. This is far more your game than mine.”

Yuuri sighed and accepted the open seat. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and placed a hand on the mouse, suddenly focusing more intently on the game.

Viktor hadn’t seen Yuuri play chess in a long time, now that he thought about it. At least not since they had first met, which had been nearly twelve years ago. When Viktor moved to Japan, Yuuri had offered up the extra room in his apartment. Not long after, they began dating, if one could call spending twenty-three hours out of the day playing video games and the last hour having sex "dating." This close proximity meant they knew each other better than they knew themselves, and more notably, what they played. And Viktor knew that Yuuri had long become bored of chess.

For all that it was a mentally stimulating game that had been with Yuuri throughout his entire life, he had grown tired of the finite, zero-sum game that required no luck and pure skill. Viktor had been good at chess, but Yuuri was a mathematical genius; he could calculate the exact strategy needed to beat any combination of moves in mere seconds. It was no longer exciting, Viktor supposed, once Yuuri had beaten a program that had been specifically designed to take down chess grandmasters. And especially less exciting since he’d beaten it another nineteen more times, alternating between going first and second.

A few moves into the game, Yuuri froze. Viktor squinted at the screen, and laughed.

“It’s no different than tic-tac-toe, huh?” Viktor teased.

“Shut up,” Yuuri mumbled. Viktor leaned forward, resting his chin on Yuuri’s head as his boyfriend began to ruminate. “It… blocked its own advance,” Yuuri muttered to himself. “But, programs will always pick the best move. Which means…”

Viktor felt a grin grow on his face. “Which means we’re playing a real person.”

Yuuri looked up at him. “We?”

He sent him a wink, then wrapped his arms around his waist. Yuuri let out a yelp of surprise as Viktor easily manhandled him and took his spot, placing Yuuri on his lap. Yuuri stammered a bit, trying to smack Viktor's chest in protest, but Viktor caught his wrist.

“Viktor!” he scolded, “I can't be distracted-"

“Relax,” Viktor said, cheerfully, bringing Yuuri’s hand up to his lips to kiss. “You might be out of practice, but there’s no way you’ll lose. Especially not with me by your side.”

“Arrogant,” Yuuri scolded, but couldn’t keep the fondness out of his voice. Viktor placed his hand over Yuuri’s on the mouse, lacing their fingers together.

“Let’s see them try to beat the both of us,” Viktor said, with a smirk. Yuuri matched his smirk with a determined grin. He leaned in to peck him on the lips, then turned back to look at the computer.

* * *

Six hours later, the two were staring, frozen, at the screen.

 _YOU ARE WINNER!_ the screen declared.

“Holy shit.” Viktor exhaled. “We won.”

“My brain is fried,” Yuuri groaned, leaning back into Viktor’s chest. “I haven’t had to try that hard to win since-“ he stopped. A fond smile slowly grew on his face.

“Since?” Viktor prompted.

Yuuri wrapped his arms around Viktor’s neck. “Since we first played,” he murmured.

Viktor practically melted, pulling him closer by the waist and kissing him deeply to celebrate their hard-fought victory. The sound of an email notification interrupted them.

**TO: Love**

**FROM: unknown**

**Excellent work.**

**If you’re that good at games, isn’t the world a tough place for you to live? What do you two think of your world?**

**Is it fun?**

**Is it easy to live in?**

Yuuri scoffed. “No,” he answered, aloud. “This world has no rules, no fairness, it takes and it takes.”

Viktor tightened his hold on his boyfriend, burying his face into the crook of his neck. “Whether you keep on winning, or keep on losing, you lose something. It’s like living one long, crappy game.”

Then, another email.

**TO: Love**

**FROM: unknown**

**If there were a world where everything was decided by straight forward games, a world atop a board, one where the rules and goal were clear, what would you think about that?**

Yuuri let out a bitter laugh. “That sounds too good to be true,” he admitted.

Viktor nodded, slowly reaching for the mouse again to click the reply button. He wrote, “ _It sounds like a dream. If there’s a world like that, when we must have been born into the wrong world.”_ The mouse hovered over the send button, but before he could click, the screens suddenly blipped into static.

“Huh?” Yuuri stiffened. Viktor tightened his grip around him, looking around in confusion.

“We think so too!” what sounded like three different voices cried out from the speakers.

Yuuri shot to his feet, clutching Viktor’s hand like a lifeline.

“You were truly born into the wrong world,” the same voices declared. An image began to form on the screen right in front of them. It looked like three sets of hands, one pink hands, one purple, and one blue. Viktor could have sworn it looked like the image was coming right out of the screen.

“So, we’ll let you be reborn into the world you should’ve been born into!”

They were blinded with bright lights for a moment, then it faded as color exploded around them.

“Welcome to our world!”

Viktor screamed feeling his body go into free-fall. It must be a hallucination- the sky was purple, dotted with faraway stars. There were two moons above them, one green and one red. Yuuri was holding onto him, grip as tight as a vice.

“What is this?” Yuuri screamed.

“It’s the world atop a game board: Disboard!” A voice declared from above them. Then, there were three girls, also in free fall, right beside them, who all looked nearly identical, aside from different color schemes and hair styles. They couldn’t have been older than six years old. Considering the circumstances, they didn’t seem bothered that they were falling from ten thousand feet into the atmosphere.

“Everything in this world is decided by straightforward games! People’s lives, even national borders!” one of the girls told them.

“Who are you?” Viktor demanded.

“Is that really the first question on your mind right now?” Yuuri screeched, looking pale and green at the same time.

“I’m Axel,” the girl in purple with pigtails answered, then maneuvered his body to point at a huge King chess piece in the distance. “These are my sisters, Lutz,” she pointed to the girl with a light blue scrunchie holding up her hair in a bun, “And Loop!” She pointed at the last girl, who was dressed all in pink and had her hair in a ponytail.

Loop followed her sister’s lead, pointing at the huge king chess piece in the distance. “We live over there. I guess you could call us the gods of this world!”

“WHO CARES?” Yuuri screamed.

“Everything in this world is decided by the Ten Pledges!” Lutz explained, holding up two hands.

“One!” Axel said, “In this world, all murder, war, and robbery are forbidden!”

“This doesn’t seem like practical information at this stage of my life!” Yuuri cried.

“Two!” Loops continued, as if Yuuri had not spoken. “All conflict will be resolved through games.”

Viktor’s eyes widened, interest suddenly piqued despite their less than ideal circumstances.

“Three!” Lutz said, “When gaming, players must bet something they agree is of equal value.”

“Four,” Axel said, “So long as Pledge three is upheld, both the game’s content and what is bet are completely free.”

“Five,” Loop said. “The challenged party has the right to decide the content of the game.”

“Six,” Lutz said. “All bets made in accordance with the Pledges must be upheld.”

“Seven,” Axel said, “Conflicts between groups will be conducted by an appointed representative with absolute authority.”

“Eight,” Loop said, “Being caught cheating during a game will result in an instant loss.”

“Nine,” Lutz said, “In the name of God, the aforementioned rules are absolute and irrevocable.”

“OH MY GOD NOW IS NOT THE TIME!” Yuuri was screaming, clutching onto Viktor tighter.

“IS THAT THE GROUND?” Viktor screamed, suddenly reminded about the fact that they were currently plummeting straight to Earth from a high altitude. Of all the ways to go, he really had not expected this to be it.

“VIKTOR!” Yuuri cried.

Viktor sucked in a deep breath and steeled himself. He shut his eyes and pulled rotated them midair to pull Yuuri over him so that he would get the brunt of the landing. Suddenly, they stopped falling. Then, they fell again, but only a few inches off the ground. Viktor winced as his back made contact with solid ground, but it barely hurt and only served the knock the breath out of his chest.

The triplets were standing over them, smiling widely.

“Ten! Let’s all have fun and play together!” they said in unison, then disappeared from view.

Viktor sat up, still holding Yuuri in his arms. “Huh?”

He looked around, but they were gone, as if they had never been there in the first place.

“ _We look forward to seeing you two again_ ,” came a voice that echoed in the wind. “ _I’m sure it won’t be long.”_

“Viktor!” Yuuri gasped. Viktor’s eyes met his, and he immediately tucked the younger man’s head into his chest.

“It’s okay, Yuuri,” he soothed, while trying to calm his own frayed nerves. “We’re okay, shhh.”

Yuuri was trembling in his arms, gasping in shaking breaths. Finally, he stilled enough to pull away, though he was still clutching him.

“I’m… I’m okay now, I think,” Yuuri whispered. “Are you okay?”

Viktor nodded. “I think so,” he said, breathless still. “But…”

Yuuri slid off of him, holding a hand out to pull him up. Viktor took it, and the two looked around in bewilderment.

“Where are we?” Yuuri murmured.

“For once,” Viktor said, “I have no fucking clue what’s going on.”

That got him a strangled laugh from his lover. Yuuri looked at him, pale faced but smiling ever so slightly.

“You never know what’s going on, Nikiforov,” he teased.

Viktor grinned back. “Of course not, darling,” he said, airily. “Now, let’s get out of here, shall we? From the looks of things, we’ve got a game to win.”

* * *

_A long, long, long time ago, the gods, along with their devotees and creations, waged an eternal war for absolute dominion over the world to assume the role of the One True God. But, with the death of the sky, the sea, the earth, and the stars, the long, gruesome battle came to a swift and victor-less end._

_Thus, the three deities who had held back and merely observed the battle won by default and became the One True Gods. Their names were Axel, Lutz, and Loop, respectively known as the God of Fun, the God of Competition, and the God of Togetherness. Collectively, the triplets were known as the Gods of Play._

_"You who call yourselves wise, while lending all your powers of strength and violence, cruelty, and death to building a towering mount of corpses, tell me this: how are you different from the dumbest of beasts?" they had asked._

_In the face of their shattered world, all excuses were meaningless. And then, they spoke: "All murder and robbery in this realm is forbidden," they said. "You sixteen races who would call yourselves wise: use all your reasoning and intellect, all your fortune and wealth, and build a tower of wisdom. Prove that you have any wisdom at all!"_

* * *

Viktor yawned, bored. “I see,” he said, eyes never leaving his phone as he typed. “So that’s how this world and the Ten Pledges came to be.”

“Yes,” one of the men in front of him said, trembling. “Now, can you please leave us at least our pants?”

Yuuri leaned over Viktor’s shoulder to squint at his phone, where he had been taking notes. Viktor might have loathed school, but he had certainly been a good student. “Rule Six,” he drawled. “All bets made in accordance with the Pledges must be upheld.”

“We bet our lives and bodies,” Viktor added, cheerfully, “and you bet everything you had on you. Correct?”

Yuuri fastened the cloak around Viktor’s neck, smothering a smirk.

“Well yes,” one of the naked men sputtered. “B-but you can’t just leave us in the middle of the wilderness in our underwear!”

Viktor pretended to think about it, tapping his finger against his chin thoughtfully while Yuuri wrapped their new possessions in a knapsack.

“Right, well, let’s go then,” Viktor finally said, strolling down the path away from the bandits, followed by Yuuri.

“Roger that,” he said, ignoring the screams of the men they had just beaten badly at a coin toss.

“Hm, so even bandits can’t attack or rob you,” Viktor mused, once they were far enough away from the group of men.

“They probably couldn’t even if they wanted to,” Yuuri noted. “They certainly seemed angry enough to want to. But those triplets seemed like they had a pretty hard stance on that first rule.”

“In other words…” Viktor said, as they stopped at the edge of the cliff overlooking a village in the distance. “It all comes down to a game.”

They eventually made their way into town. It was right on the waterfront on one side, with sprawling farmland on the other. The buildings' architecture looked like that of Medieval Europe. The area they were in had buildings partially on top of the water, which was a beautiful, crystal blue color, clearly unpolluted by any sort of industry.

“I’m exhausted.” Yuuri sighed. “We need to find a place to stay before we can even think about what to do.”

Viktor made a noise of agreement. “We’ll need money.”

There was a shout from a nearby tavern. Viktor and Yuuri looked at each other, and nodded. They peeked into the tavern from the deck, finding it crowded with a number of people, playing various games and drinking.

Viktor turned to a woman sitting alone on the deck, catching her attention.

“What’s going on here?” Viktor asked, curious.

She smirked at them. “You haven’t heard? You must be from out of town then.”

“You can say that,” Yuuri muttered.

“It’s the day we’re deciding who will be the next king,” the woman explained, jerking her head over to where some people were playing cards.

“A gambling tournament?” Viktor asked, curiosity piqued. “To determine your king?”

“It was the last king’s dying wish,” the woman said, airily. “He said to make the next king humanity’s best gambler.”

“So even an absolute monarchy is decided by a game,” Viktor mused. Yuuri swayed on his feet.

“Viktor,” he groaned. “Who cares right now? We’ve been walking for hours, and I still haven’t slept in days.”

“That’s your own fault, _solnyshko_ ,” Viktor reminded him. Yuuri pouted, leaning his head onto his shoulder. Then, he peeked up to look behind Viktor’s shoulder.

“Oh, is that what they’re doing, then?” Yuuri asked. Viktor craned his neck to see two young men sitting at a table. The one with dark hair was leaning against the back of his chair, looking bored. The other, with platinum blonde hair and blue-green eyes, was staring intently at his cards, looking concentrated and nervous.

“The blonde is Yuri Plisetsky,” the woman said. “He’s the only grandson of the last king, but he can’t inherit the throne unless he wins the tournament.”

The blonde boy couldn’t have been older than fifteen. He was sweating bullets and his hands were shaking, slightly. His face was contorted with rage; not a very good poker face, then.

Viktor’s thoughts were cut off by a yawn from Yuuri.

“Hanging in there?” Viktor whispered in his ear.

“I’m fine,” Yuuri mumbled. Viktor gently led him to sit against the tavern wall, when a glint of gold caught his eye. The woman sitting alone at the table had a small pouch of gold coin. He wasn’t sure how much it was worth, but a little gold was better than none.

“Oh?” The woman smirked. “Interested?”

Viktor snorted. “No, just wondering if you were going to enter,” he said, casually sliding into the chair across from her as Yuuri dozed off.

The woman shook her head, scoffing and touching her pouch of gold. “No, no, this is enough for me. I know when to cut my losses.” Then, her face darkened as she glanced back into the tavern where the two boys were playing. “Besides, that Seung-gil character is tough. Most of the other players withdrew when they saw him play; he really doesn’t mess around.”

Viktor’s eyes flashed. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Yuuri’s eyes open with interest.

“So you’re scared?” Viktor taunted, leaning forward with a smirk.

“What?” The woman turned her attention back to Viktor, eyes narrowing dangerously

Viktor placed his chin over his folded hands, resting his elbows on the table. “Well,” he said, voice never losing its pleasant tone, “you can’t lose if you never try, so I guess I can see why you decided to run with your tail tucked between your legs.”

A brief flash of rage passed over the woman’s face before it cleared, and she smirked. Much like Viktor had predicted, she was used to winning, was prideful in her skills, and would underestimate him. Her hubris would be her own downfall.

“Care to play, then?” the woman asked, picking up the stack of cards.

Viktor smiled innocently. “I don’t know…” he trailed off. “I haven’t got time to play around for fun, after all. But, if you were to, perhaps, bet all that money, you could certainly make it worth my time.”

The woman sputtered. “What? Do you even know how much is in here? You’ll need to bet something of equal value, and you don’t look like you have anything on your persons.”

Viktor felt Yuuri’s presence behind him, and felt his hand resting on his shoulder. Emboldened by his boyfriend, Viktor plastered a smirk on his face and suggested, “Well then, how about if you win, you can do whatever you want with both of us?”

The woman hesitated. “Are you- are you serious?” she asked, eyes flickering to look at Yuuri incredulously.

Yuuri nodded. “We’re sure,” he told her, sounding almost bored.

“Perfect,” Viktor declared, clasping his hands together. “We’ll play a single hand of poker. What do you think?”

There were people watching them now, having clearly overheard the wager, with interest.

“Wouldn’t blame you if you were scared,” Yuuri added, sliding into Viktor’s lap with practiced ease. “You can quit now, if you’d like.”

The woman grit her teeth. “Don’t get too cocky, outsiders.” She scowled, but lifted her left hand. “I swear by the Pledges.”

Viktor copied her. “I swear by the Pledges.”

“ _Aschente!_ ”

The woman dealt the cards, and they both picked up their hand. She smirked looking through them, placing one card down and drawing another triumphantly.

“Vitya,” Yuuri murmured. It was clear that the woman had no poker face, practically projecting her hand to them. Viktor, meanwhile, kept his face neutral as he put down his entire hand to redraw.

“I know,” he assured him. Yuuri nodded once and fell silent.

“Not so lucky?” the woman guessed. “How unfortunate.”

Viktor would normally let the comment slide off him, but this time, he let out a sigh. “Yeah, well, I’ve had a bad day. Started it out with a skydive from the stratosphere, then spent the rest of it walking in the sun.”

“Huh?”

He waved the woman’s confusion aside, glancing through his new hand. “Nothing, nothing. Are you ready?”

Leaning against his shoulder, Yuuri began to nod off.

“I’m ready,” the woman said. “I’ll even do you a favor and let you trade cards again.”

“No thank you,” Viktor said, barely stifling a yawn. He hadn’t realized how tired he also was.

“Oh?” A triumphant grin grew on the woman’s face. “In that case… sorry, boys, I win!” She turned her cards over, shooting up to standing. “Full house!”

Viktor didn’t let anything betray his stoic expression. “Yeah, sorry is probably right.” He flipped over his cards and heard the woman let out a strangled noise of confusion.

“A royal straight flush?” she screamed. “That- that can’t be possible! That’s like a one in five hundred thousand chance-“

Yuuri slid off Viktor’s lap, allowing them both to stand up.

“Actually, a one in six hundred fifty thousand chance,” Yuuri corrected absently.

“And that ‘one’ happened to show up,” Viktor added. “Now, pledge six. All bets must be upheld.” He held out a hand expectantly.

The woman was staring at them, horrified. “Who are you two?” she asked, stunned. She reluctantly dropped the pouch of gold into Viktor’s waiting hand.

“No one special,” Yuuri said. “Just a couple of outsiders.”

They walked off, leaving the woman and the dead silent crowd of spectators.

When they were far enough away, Yuuri pulled the hood off his head and said, “Such obvious cheating.” He clicked his tongue in disapproval.

“Pledge eight,” Viktor told him, “being caught cheating during a game results in an automatic loss. Which just means we can’t get caught. Besides, don’t you want to sleep?”

Yuuri sighed, but didn’t protest anymore as they walked into the inn. Viktor walked up to the man at the bar and placed a single gold coin on the counter, smiling charmingly.

“I’ll take a room for two,” Viktor said. “One bed is fine. How many nights will this cover?”

The barkeeper grunted. “One night,” he said, eyes flickering to avoid Viktor’s eyes.

Viktor leaned in, smile growing a little cold as he laughed. “We’re pretty tired,” he said. “So why don’t you tell much this really covers?”

A huff. “Two nights.”

Yuuri leaned into Viktor’s side. “You should really watch your tone,” he drawled, “and where you’re looking when you’re trying to rip someone off.”

“You should really be careful who you lie to,” Viktor added, cheerfully. His eyes flashed dangerously.

In the end, the two walked away from the barkeeper with a key to a room for four nights. As they walked to the stairs, they passed Yuri Plisetsky and Seung-gil, still playing.

“He’s gonna lose,” Yuuri murmured, halting a bit in his step.

“Well of course,” Viktor said, also stopping to turn and watch the two more carefully. “He doesn’t seem to know what a poker face is.”

Then, he took a closer look at Seung-gil’s cards. “H-huh?”

“Yeah,” Yuuri muttered. “He’s cheating. But…”

“But?”

Yuuri narrowed his eyes. “I just can’t tell how.”

“Hm.”

If Yuuri couldn’t figure it out, then he must be cheating using some otherworldly methods. Viktor scanned the room, full of various people, until his eyes landed on a figure at the corner of the bar. Viktor was pretty sure it was a young man who couldn’t have been older than Yuuri, but it was hard to see since part of his face was obscured by the hood of his cloak. All Viktor could make out was tanned skin, dark hair, and a pair of gray eyes.

“So,” Seung-gil asked, his voice monotone. “What will you do? Fold?”

“S-shut up!” Plisetsky snapped, knuckles going white with his grip on his cards. “I’m trying to focus here!”

Plisetsky drew another card, looking about on the verge of a mental breakdown. Yuuri shook his head and made to move toward the door. Viktor followed, but not before clutching the back of Plisetsky’s chair and leaning close to whisper to him.

“He’s cheating,” he murmured.

Then, he followed Yuuri up the steps to the room, ignoring the sharp inhale of surprise from the prince. He didn’t look back to see if he was being watched.

Yuuri immediately flopped onto the large, king sized bed as Viktor emptied out his possessions onto the table.

“So we both have our phones, DS's, and our tablets.” Viktor examined them thoughtfully. “It’s a good thing we have our solar charged batteries and chargers.”

“That’s it?” Yuuri bemoaned, muffled from burying his face into the pillow.

“Considering the circumstances, we’re lucky to have even this much,” Viktor said with a sigh, setting up their chargers in the window sill. He lifted his phone, and frowned. “No signal?”

“Of course not,” Yuuri said, rolling over onto his side. “This is a real fantasy world. Just from what we saw today, their infrastructure is no better than feudal Europe.”

“Figures,” Viktor said, still looking out the window.

He felt a pair of hands wrapping around his waist, and a face bury into his back.

“You’re still thinking about that boy,” Yuuri guessed. “And his friend who helped him cheat.”

“Yes,” Viktor admitted. “Magic. A whole tool we know nothing about… we could be vulnerable to cheaters if we don’t know about it.”

“Do you think we can beat that?” Yuuri asked, genuinely curious.

A beat of silence.

Then, Yuuri chuckled. “Stupid question,” he said.

“Say, Yuuri,” Viktor said, suddenly. “In stories or anime, usually the protagonists try to get home when they’re suddenly transported to another world, right?

The sight outside of their window was beautiful. The sky was full of colors Viktor had never even seen, and this was just the beginning. He was in a world dominated by games, and he was here with Yuuri. What more could he possibly want?

“But why would we want to go back to a world like ours?” Viktor murmured.

After a few moments of silence passed, Viktor turned to look at Yuuri. He was asleep, curled up next to Viktor with his arms still wrapped around his waist. Viktor gently detached his arms from his waist, and pulled the blanket over his body.

“I don’t want to go back,” Yuuri said, so softly that Viktor thought he might have imagined it. Then, Viktor smiled.

“Well,” he said. “Then it’s decided.”

He laid on the bed beside his lover, looking up at his phone illuminating his face. Under the to do list, he checked off _find lodging_ and typed up a new item.

 _Conquer Disboard_.


	2. Chapter 2 - Yuuri

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri and Viktor meet Yuri Plisetsky, who introduces them to the world they've found themselves in.

**Inn of Elchea, Lower Town District, Elchea City**

Yuuri was awakened by a loud pounding at the door. It took him several moments to figure out what was going on and where he was. By the time Yuuri remembered the previous day’s events, Viktor had already rolled out of bed and answered the door.

Yuuri squinted. Without his glasses, he could only make out a short, thin figure with chin-length platinum blonde hair in the doorway.

“Viktor?” Yuuri mumbled, still sluggish from sleep. “What is it?”

“We have a guest,” Viktor answered, crossing the room to sit next to him. Yuuri reached for his glasses blindly, managing to shove them on his face and blink up at the newcomer.

Yuri Plisetsky stood in front of them, seething and red-faced with anger.

“I’ve got a bone to pick with you two! And just what the hell is going on here?” Plisetsky demanded.

“Well,” Viktor said, with a yawn. “You stormed into our room in the middle of the night. We could’ve been in a far more compromising position.”

“Viktor!” Yuuri groaned, burying his face into his shoulder. He felt, rather than heard, the chuckle that followed.

Now that Yuuri was more awake, he took a moment to take in their surroundings. It was still dark outside, so the only thing lighting up the small room was the small fire in the fireplace. Its glow illuminated Viktor’s face, highlighting his jawline. Viktor was also shirtless, which was normally something Yuuri appreciated, if it weren’t for the fact that they currently had a guest. Yuuri himself was clad only in his boxers and a long button-down shirt that was a size too big for him.

“If you knew Lee was cheating why didn’t you just tell me how?” Plisetsky demanded. “I could have won! And now, because of you two, I’m out of the running to be king!”

“You mean,” Viktor began, cheerily, “you’re a sore loser…”

“And now you’re taking it out on us,” Yuuri finished.

Plisetsky screamed in fury. 

“I see,” Viktor said, clasping his hands together. “You’ve lost everything because of your naïveté, and now you’re blaming us for seeing through an obvious trick.”

“What?!” Plisetsky shouted, shooting up out of his chair. “You-“

“You’re young,” he added, cocking his head slightly to the right. “You can’t control your emotions, and you’re easily riled. You take risks, but they’re not calculated enough. So, you bet big and lose big. You never had a chance.”

“Viktor,” Yuuri said with a sigh. “Don’t be mean.”

“I can see why your grandfather opened the throne to a tournament,” Viktor continued, as if Yuuri hadn’t spoken, “if you were the heir.”

Plisetsky let out a strangled noise of anger. He made an aborted move to strike at them, grinding his teeth. “You take that back!”

“ _Viktor_ ,” Yuuri said, more sharply this time. Viktor looked at him, clearly confused, and his face fell.

“Too much?” he asked, sheepishly.

“I’ll say,” Yuuri said, rolling his eyes. “For someone so attuned to people, you take it too far sometimes, love.”

Viktor pouted. “Alright, alright.” He turned his attention back to Plisetsky, who was eyeing the both of them warily.

“How about we play a game?” Viktor suggested, smiling now. “Rock, paper, scissors.”

Plisetsky seemed taken off guard. “Why?” he asked, suspiciously.

“Well, all conflicts are to be resolved with games,” Viktor quipped. “So, what do you say?”

“Fine, idiot,” Plisetsky held out a hand, face set with determination. “But get ready to lose!”

“Okay,” Viktor said, agreeably, also holding out his first in preparation. “But I’ll only play paper.”

Yuuri cast a look at his boyfriend in exasperation, while Plisetsky looked confused.

“I can only win if I play paper,” Viktor elaborated. “If I beat you with scissors or rock, we both lose and we’ll tie.”

“Alright,” Plisetsky agreed. “But what are we betting?”

“Whoever wins gets to do whatever they want with the loser,” Viktor said immediately.

“What?” Plisetsky’s eyes widened.

“Do we have a deal?” Viktor asked.

Plisetsky scowled. “Fine. What if we tie?”

“Then I’ll give you a hint about how Lee cheated,” Viktor said, after a moment of deliberation, “in exchange, you’ll owe me a favor.”

“What kind of a favor?” Plisetsky demanded, suspicious.

 _Smart kid_ , Yuuri thought, smothering a small smile.

“We’ll eventually run out of money,” Viktor said, holding up the small bag of gold. “So we won’t be able to afford many more nights at an inn.”

“Just that?” Plisetsky asked, suspiciously. “I let you live at my place, in exchange for how that guy cheated?”

Viktor merely raised an eyebrow, smirking.

“Alright,” Plisetsky agreed. They both held up their hands.

“I swear by the pledges, _aschente_ _!_ "

Yuuri could see Plisetsky’s face darkening as he began calculating his odds of winning versus tying. He met his boyfriend’s smirking face, and rolled his eyes.

“Rock, papers, scissors, shoot!”

A beat of silence, then,

“HA!” Plisetsky was grinning, looking far younger as he jumped in excitement. “We tied, which means you’ll tell me how he cheated, right?”

He dropped his hands from where it hung, midair, in the scissors position. Viktor also dropped his hand from where he had been holding a scissors position.

“Well,” Viktor said, smiling cordially. “It was magic.”

Plisetsky’s smile disappeared. “Yes,” he growled, “I know it was magic. I want to know how.”

“We don’t know how,” Yuuri said, amused. “Besides, it was just a hint. We’re outsiders. We don’t know how magic works. Yet.

“Yet?” Plisetsky echoed, eyes narrowed.

“You owe us a favor,” Viktor said, smiling. “And I’m about to call it in.”

“You said it was just to give you a place to stay!” Plisetsky protested.

“No, you assumed that,” Viktor corrected. “I didn’t respond."

Plisetsky looked gobsmacked. “But- but-!”

“So,” Viktor declared, “You will be our apprentice!”

“What?!” Plisetsky screamed, horrified.

“We will make you the next best gambler humanity has to offer! And,” Viktor added, with a wink, “we’ll need to move in with you, in order to further your studies!”

Plisetsky just gaped, stunned to silence.

“Relax,” Yuuri told the boy with a sigh. “We won’t be too much of a bother. But, Viktor, what are you thinking?”

Viktor shrugged. “I’m thinking we needed a place to stay and someone to explain this world to us, so who better than the boy who lived as royalty his whole life?”

“Fair enough,” Yuuri conceded.

Viktor stood up and picked up his phone. “Hey, Yuri?”

“Yes?” They both answered, before turning to look at each other in surprise. 

“Hm, that’ll get confusing,” Viktor mused, then his face lit up. He pointed at Plisetsky, smiling. “From now on, you’ll be known as Yurio!”

“What?!” he shouted. “Why do I have to be renamed?”

“Because I’d never be able to convince my Yuuri!” Viktor laughed. “Besides, I’ve known him for longer!”

While Yurio fumed, Yuuri rolled his eyes. “If you’d like,” Yuuri said, as placatingly as possible, “we can go to your place now, since we’re already up.”

Yurio’s eye twitched. “Fine!” he grumbled. “It’s not like you two idiots can get into too much trouble in the palace.”

* * *

**Royal Bathhouse, King City District, Elchea City**

“Oh, this reminds me of the hot springs back home,” Yuuri sighed contentedly, sinking deeper into the water.

“It reminds me of that one time we visited your family,” Viktor agreed, snaking his arms around Yuuri’s waist and nuzzling his neck. “Remember? Just us, in the baths, for hours alone…”

“Ugh, you are both so gross!” Yurio made a disgusted noise. He stood at the entrance of the royal baths. “When you’re finished being disgusting, actually clean up and get your new clothes. There’s a closet right next door to your chambers.”

Reluctantly, they finished bathing and made their way into the closet, full of multicolored suits and casual clothing for every occasion.

“Hm, I’d love to see you in this,” Viktor purred, watching Yuuri hold up a suit to examine.

“I don’t know, it’s a lot more formal than I’m used to,” Yuuri said, hesitantly. 

“It’ll look gorgeous on you regardless, _moya lyubov_ ,” Viktor cooed. After a bit of debate, he managed to convince Yuuri to try on the fancy, purple suit. Eventually he settled on a royal blue one with less frills, citing that purple was more Viktor’s color. Meanwhile, Viktor settled for a purple suit with billowing coattails and gold embellishments.

“It looks a little ridiculous,” Viktor said, inspecting himself in the mirror. “But I kind of like it.”

“It suits you,” Yuuri assured him, adjusting Viktor’s tie for him. Feeling a little mischievous, he then yanked on it, pulling Viktor down at his eye level. Viktor’s eyes were wide, staring at him in surprise. Yuuri smirked, and pulled him closer for a long kiss. He finally broke it, leaving Viktor pink-faced and stammering. “Let’s go meet Yurio then. I’ve got some questions for him,” he said, casually, turning on his heels.

“R-right!” Viktor hastily followed him back to the room that Yurio had first shown them to. Yuuri made a beeline for the bookcase, pulling a thick one out at random. He immediately curled up on a chair on the balcony, skimming the pages curiously. Yuuri sighed, content to just sit there, leaning against Viktor, while his boyfriend stood next to him and looked over his shoulder.

“That’s not any language I recognize,” Viktor mused. He was multilingual, so if he didn’t recognize it, Yuuri figured it was safe to say it wasn’t a language from their world.

“It’s in Imanity,” Yurio explained, joining them on the balcony. Yuuri jumped in surprise; the teen hadn’t made any noise when coming in. He put down a tray full of food and tea.

“Huh, these look just like pirozhkis!” Viktor immediately took one, examining it with an excited smile.

“These are a recipe my grandfather passed down to me,” Yurio said, frowning in confusion. “What is a pirozhki?”

“It’s a food from my home,” Viktor explained, then took a bite. His face lit up immediately with excitement. “ _Vkusno!_ There’s rice and pork in this!”

Yuuri perked up a little bit at that, interest piqued. Viktor held up the half bitten one, offering it to Yuuri to try. 

“Oh!” Yuuri made a noise of delight. “It’s just like katsudon!”

“Katsudon?”

“A dish from _my_ home,” Yuuri explained again, smiling a little fondly.

Yurio gave them both strange looks. “Just where are you two from?”

Thus began the long story of the past day and where they came from. They explained to Yurio that they were from another world, but had been transported here, ten thousand feet into the air, by the Gods of Play.

Yurio, to his credit, didn’t seem too taken aback. “You two are weird,” he had grumbled. “I figured you weren’t from around here. Besides, with magic, anything’s possible.”

In turn, Yurio also told them about Disboard.

“We are in Elchea. It was once the largest Imanity nation,” he explained. “The human race.”

“The human race?” Yuuri repeated, curious. 

Yurio scowled, looking out over the balcony. “Yes,” he said. “At one point in history, there were several Imanity nations across the world. But they began dying out by the time my grandpa was crowned. Now, Elchea is all that’s left. So, in order to maintain our dominion, Grandpa started betting territory.”

Viktor’s eyes widened, and Yuuri felt his hand clutch his tighter. “So you weren’t betting against other humans, but… other races?”

Yurio nodded. His lips twisted in unhappiness. “Yes.”

“What other races are there?” Yuuri asked.

“Well,” Yurio began. “The Gods made the Ten Pledges apply to sixteen sentient races in all. Collectively, they make up the Exceed. The First Order is Old Deus; they were the ones who were defeated by the triplets. Then there is the Phantasma, and then the Third Order is the Elementals.”

“What’s this order business?” Viktor interrupted, already tapping furiously into his phone’s notes.

“It’s a hierarchy, determined by the races’ affinity for magic,” Yurio explained, impatiently. “Like, the elves are the Seventh Order. They’re incredibly skilled at magic and created Elven Garde, the largest nation. But then there’s the Warbeasts, who are on the lower end. They’re the Fourteenth Order, and the Sirens are the Fifteenth.”

“So where does Imanity fit on the hierarchy?” Yuuri asked, though he had a feeling he already knew the answer to that.

Yurio hesitated, his face twisting in annoyance. “We’re the Sixteenth Order.”

“The lowest, huh?” Viktor didn’t sound surprised.

“Well, it can’t be helped,” Yurio grunted. “We have zero magical ability.”

“None at all?” Yuuri asked, a little disappointed.

Yurio shook his head. “None,” he confirmed. “Imanity lacks the spirit circuits necessary to connect us to magic. So, we can’t use it and we can’t even tell when it’s being used.”

“That’s a huge disadvantage if all fifteen other races have them,” Yuuri mused.

Yuuri thought back to the young man in the tavern, eyes bright with magic, and frowned. The unknown variable that was magic could certainly prove to be problematic.

“Don’t think like that,” Viktor told him. “If we think like that, we’ll keep losing, along with the rest of Imanity.”

“What?” Yurio asked, bewildered.

“Yurio,” Viktor said, instead of answering, “do you guys have more books here?”

Yurio frowned, looking at Viktor for a long moment. He seemed to be debating if it was worth telling him, before finally settling on a decision.

“Yeah,” Yurio sighed. “There’s more books in the study, but they’re…”

* * *

**Royal Library, King City District, Elchea City**

“They’re all written in Imanity,” Viktor finished, devastated, as they leaned over a desk in the library with an open book.

“Yes,” Yurio said, rolling his eyes.

“So we’ll have to learn it, then,” Viktor groaned. “Four languages from Earth, and another one here, I suppose.”

“Unfortunate,” Yuuri said, gaining both Viktor and Yurio’s attention. He snapped the book he had brought with him from the bedroom. “... for you.”

“Huh?” Yurio was confused, while Viktor grinned, knowingly.

“Already?” Viktor laughed. “I didn’t even get a chance to start!

“I’ve finished learning it,” Yuuri said, for Yurio’s benefit. “You’ll just have to play catch up, slow-poke."

Viktor pouted. “Well, nice job, my Yuuri!” he exclaimed, brightening up. “ _Moya lyubov_ , a genius!”

“You- you learned an entire language?!” Yurio demanded. “That’s impossible!”

“Yeah,” Viktor said, glancing back. “Linguistics is all just patterns, isn’t it? That’s Yuuri’s specialty.”

“Especially if it matches the spoken language,” Yuuri added. “It’s just like reverse engineering.”

Yurio’s eyes were wide. “You… you’re both insane,” he realized, as if coming to a terrible realization. He slumped in a chair, utterly defeated by the turn of events.

"Don't worry," Yuuri said, smirking. "You can help Viktor, while I start searching."

"Searching for what?" Yurio wondered aloud, but received no answer.

They spent the rest of the day and night holed up in the library, Viktor quickly picking up the language as they poured over books of Elchea’s history. Eventually Yurio disappeared sometime in the evening to get some rest. He walked in the next morning, looking red-eyed and angrier than ever.

“What’s wrong?” Yuuri asked, idly flicking through a book. “You look worse for wear than us, and we’ve been up all night.”

“That Seung-gil guy won the tournament, he’s going to be crowned king,” he said, clearly upset. “And you guys have been holed up in here all night!”

“We’ve been learning about the history of Elchea,” Yuuri explained.

“Say, Yurio,” Viktor asked, casually, “why did you want to be king, anyways? You don’t seem like the type.”

Yurio scowled. “My grandpa believed that Imanity could beat the other races, he thought we were better than what everyone else thought we were,” he said, grudgingly. His eyes were fixed on the ground. “However much I don’t believe in Imanity, I did believe in Grandpa. I wanted to prove him right.”

Viktor slowly closed his book. “I’m glad you have the conviction of a ruler,” he said, with surprising gentleness. “But, in the state things are now, Elchea will fall in a decade or less. It’ll be doomed as soon as Seung-gil is crowned king.”

Yurio froze, horror-stricken. “What?!”

Neither responded. Viktor sat up straight, suddenly slamming his book shut. “Let’s take a break,” he said, stretching. He stood and held out a hand to Yuuri, who took it. “How about a walk?” 

Yurio looked at him, blankly, while Yuuri nodded.

“Sure,” he agreed, curious as to what his boyfriend was planning. 

Yurio followed them, still silently stewing, out of the library and down a corridor toward the throne room. At the other end of the hall, the same young man from the tavern who had played against Yurio stood, flanked by two royal guards.

“Seung-gil,” Yurio glowered. “So, the coronation is about to begin?”

The stoic man looked at him, unimpressed. “Yuri Plisetsky,” he deadpanned, walking closer. Then, “So, you haven’t replaced your watch yet.”

Yuuri could see the younger boy twitch and reach for his left wrist, which was notably empty.

Seung-gil held up a gold watch, the crystal face glinting in the glow of the sun shining through the stained glass windows. “You can have it back, if you want,” he drawled. “You said your grandfather gave it to you? Here.” He held it out. 

Suspiciously, Yurio reached for it. As soon as he was about to grasp it, Seung-gil dropped it. The gold watch clattered on the ground.

“Let it be a lesson,” Seung-gil said coolly, walking past Yurio dismissively. “Your foolish grandfather was never meant to be king, and you’re the same way.” 

Yuuri could see Yurio’s fists tighten in anger. Then, he dropped to his knees and reached for the watch, but Viktor spoke up, causing him to freeze.

“So, that’s why you’re the grandson of the foolish king,” he said. Viktor reached forward and scooped it up. It caught Seung-gil’s attention, causing him to stop in his tracks and appraise Viktor with a curious eye.

Viktor turned and held out the gold watch to Seung-gil. “Pledge six: all bets made in accordance with the Pledges must be upheld. So, this is yours.” Then, he grinned. “For now, at least.”

Seung-gil scoffed, sparing Yurio one last sneer. “I see the grandson of the foolish king has idiots for servants as well.” He snatched the watch out of Viktor’s hands and stalked off to the other end of the corridor.

“Say, Yuuri?”

Yuuri glanced at Viktor’s back. “What is it?”

“Will you stay with me?” The question came out more vulnerable than it was meant to, Yuuri realized. Viktor’s voice was soft, almost hesitant, but no one would be able to pick up on it except for Yuuri.

“Of course,” Yuuri said, surprised he would even ask. “I promised you that a long time ago.”

“Even in this strange world?” Viktor asked, turning to look at him finally. “Because if not-“

“Viktor, shut up,” Yuuri told him. “You’re enjoying yourself. And I’m no longer bored.”

“Hm,” Viktor mused, then kissed him on the cheek. “Well, that’s settled then. Apprentice, are you just going to sit there?”

Yurio was wiping his eyes furiously. For all that he acted tough and brash, Yuuri realized distantly, he really was just a lonely boy who had just lost both his grandfather as well as his claim to the throne in one fell swoop. 

“Let’s go,” Yuuri said, holding a hand out to him. He was eyed with suspicion.

“Go where?”

Viktor also held out a hand. “We’re going to prove your grandfather was right.”

Yurio’s eyes were wide. He took both their hands, letting them pull him up. He followed them down the corridor as Viktor pulled out his phone. Out of the corner of Yuuri’s eye, he could see the to do list.

_Become rulers of Elchea._


	3. Chapter 3 - Viktor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Viktor and Yuuri face off against Seung-gil for the crown of Elchea.

**Royal Palace, King City District, Elchea City**

“You’re going to crash the coronation?!” Yurio shrieked.

“No,” Viktor said, confidently striding down the hall. “ _We_ are going to crash the coronation.”

“We just got to this world,” Yuuri added, walking side by side with Viktor. “It wouldn’t do for us to let someone get crowned king and destroy the very place we just decided to stay in.”

“And since no one else seems to up for it, I guess we’ll just have to become king and take back our territory, huh?” Viktor mused, and threw open the doors to the main hall.

The minister was standing next to Seung-gil before a crowd of people, mid-way through his address. “-therefore, in accordance with the wishes of our former king, Seung-gil Lee shall be crowned our new ruler. Should anyone object, speak now or forever hold your peace-“

“I object!” Viktor declared, standing proud and his chin lifted. Everyone gasped, whispers filling through the room as they all turned to look at them. He felt Yuuri twitch a little bit at his side, clearly uncomfortable from all the people’s attention.

The minister was stunned. “Are you saying you wish to challenge him?”

“Of course,” Viktor said, with a smirk.

“You lost, and now you’re sending your servants against me?” Seung-gil said to Yurio, scoffing. “Pathetic, just like your grandfather.”

Viktor could see Yuuri stiffen beside him.

 _Here we go,_ Viktor thought, gleefully. _There’s the Yuuri Katsuki I’ve been waiting for._

Yuuri narrowed his eyes at the young man as he ran a hand through his hair, pushing his bangs out of his face. Viktor sighed, besotted.

“Well, we can’t just let the country be handed over to some dirty cheater,” Yuuri said, finally giving in. “Especially one who’s getting help from another country.”

There were more gasps and whispers in the room. Viktor could see Yuuri looking at his phone, where he had snapped a picture of the young man from the tavern.

“Anyone hiding their ears?” Yuuri asked, in a low voice.

Yurio was scanning the room with narrowed, determined eyes. “No.”

Seung-gil sneered. “Just what do you mean?”

Yuuri held up his phone. “Still playing dumb? Well,” he turned on his heels, carefully surveying the crowd. “If someone was in cahoots with the elves, and had used magic to win, well, then this country would be finished.”

Viktor could see Seung-gil’s face was still a perfect, aloof mask. Still, he quickly drew everyone’s attention back to him.

“Are you trying to say that I am cheating?” he asked, coldly.

“I’m not trying,” Yuuri said, matching his tone. “I _am_ saying you’re cheating.”

 _God_ , Viktor loved him when he got this competitive. 

“Very well then,” Seung-gil glowered. “We’ll settle this with a game, just as you wish.” 

Viktor then spotted the same figure in the crowd, draped heavily in a cloak with a hood. He nudged Yuuri, and saw his lips twitch into a smirk.

“Though,” Yuuri added, thoughtfully, “if we’re going to play, I’ll have to ask that you kick your helper over there out of the room.”

Viktor immediately pointed him out, and everyone’s eyes followed his line of sight. Yurio growled, lunging forward and pulling the hood off the young man’s head, revealing an Elf with tanned skin, dark hair and eyes, and pointed ears. Gasps filled the room.

Seung-gil didn’t miss a beat. His expression was cool, unbothered. “Oh, I see,” he said, “you’ve found some random Elf and placed them in the crowd, to frame me as some traitor.

Yuuri laughed. “Oh, you’re good,” he said, almost admiringly. “That’s a very good excuse.”

“Why don’t you just leave, Elf,” Seung-gil said, projecting his voice.

Without another word, the Elf pulled his cloak back up over his head and immediately fled from the room.

“Well, it would seem everything is ready,” Seung-gil said, as soon as the Elf was out of sight.

“Yes,” Yuuri agreed.

“In accordance with the Pledges, I will decide the game.” Seung-gil crossed his arms over his chest. “A game that leaves no room for cheaters.”

“Hm, makes sense then why you’d change the game, then,” Yuuri taunted.

Seung-gil ignored this. “We will play at a different venue. A servant will come get you when it is time.”

* * *

“So that’s how he won?” Yurio demanded, fists clenched. “Using Elf magic?”

“Keep it down,” Yuuri said, with a yawn. “I need to rest my brain before we play whatever mind games with Seung-gil.” He shifted so that his feet were planted on the bench, then laid down with his head on Viktor’s lap.

“We noticed the Elf in the tavern,” Viktor explained, running his fingers through Yuuri’s hair. The younger man let out a soft, content sigh.

“Tch,” Yurio scowled, looking away in disgust. “That doesn’t explain how you knew Seung-gil was cheating!”

Yuuri wordlessly held up a phone, showing the picture he had taken of Seung-gil during their first day on Disboard, showing his cards, which were all hearts.

“So that secret tool of yours can detect magic? Is that it?” Yurio demanded. “What kind of magic did he use, then?”

“No clue,” Viktor said, smiling. “Magic’s quite interesting though, no? If he can change cards that are faced down, there’s no way to prove that he was cheating. There’d be no way to win.”

Yurio’s eyes widened. “So that’s why you didn’t challenge him until the very last second,” he realized. “With the tournament style, and our inability to detect magic, it would’ve been impossible for anyone to win against him with an Elf at his side. Which gives the Elves the perfect puppet king.”

Viktor grinned. “Very well said, Yurio!” he exclaimed. “We’ll make a good protégé out of you yet!”

“I’m not your protégé!”

“Uh huh uh,” Viktor sang, “Pledge six!”

Yurio let out a growl of frustration.

“It’s so simple, I’m surprised no other race has tried before,” Viktor added. “And I’m sure Seung-gil had the same thought.”

Yurio froze. “You mean… he thinks that we’re just the puppet of some other race,” he realized, eyes widening.

“Yes.” Viktor nodded. “He probably thinks that Elchea will be the stage for an international diplomatic war.”

“But at least it means he won’t be able to use magic and cheat like before,” Yurio said. “Unless they’ve accounted for another nation interfering.”

“Right,” Viktor agreed. “Which means they’ll use a spell we won’t be able to detect as easily.”

“That’s worse!”

“Not exactly,” Viktor corrected. “We can at least narrow down what they can and cannot do. They won’t be able to do anything that directly affects us, so the possibility of winning is still there. And as long as there’s a possibility…”

“We’ll win,” Yuuri finished, finally opening his eyes again. This time, though, he had removed his glasses and pushed his hair out of his face.

“Ah, Yuuri,” Viktor purred, “I love it when you go all _Eros_!” Yuuri laughed and winked at him.

“I know, Viktor,” he teased. “That’s why I did it.”

“Oh, you’re too good to me!”

“Gross,” Yurio declared, scowling. 

“Speaking of which…” Viktor’s face brightened as he looked at Yurio. “We need to give you your new nickname!”

“Huh?” Yurio made a face. “You already gave me a nickname!”

“I mean if you’re going to be a part of our team!” Viktor explained. “Whenever we start new games, Yuuri uses the name Eros, and I use Agape. They’re two forms of love, and now we just have to come up with one for you!”

Yurio opened his mouth to retort, but a servant walked by the entrance way, signaling that it was time to go.

The carriage they took to the new venue was grand and large on the inside, with cushioned seats facing one another. Yuuri sat on Viktor’s lap while Yurio sat to their left.

“I’ll be frank with you,” Seung-gil said, stony-faced, once they began the journey. “I’m working with the Elves in order to secure a place of Imanity to live. Then, once we have the minimum territory we need, I will break ties with them.”

“Hm,” Viktor said, leaning back casually. “Interesting. So why are you telling this to someone who might be a foreign spy?”

Seung-gil grunted. “Think about it, the only way Imanity will survive is under the protection of a powerful nation, then abandon all games and close off our borders.” His eyes flickered over to Yurio. “You should know this better than anyone, Plisetsky.”

“So we just bend over for the elves?” Yurio scoffed.

His lips thinned. “Elven Garde is the largest nation in the world. They have all the resources they could ever need, and their magic is unbreakable. I want you to withdraw from the match. I will not be a puppet for the Elves.”

“Let me get this straight.” Yuuri frowned. “We’d get to live under the wing of a powerful nation, and then you decide to shut down the entire country and not face retribution from a sleighted Elven Garde?”

”The Elf isn’t-“ Seung-gil seemed to catch himself. He shook his head. “They can challenge us all they like; we simply would not accept anymore games.”

“It’s not an awful plan,” Viktor conceded.

Seung-gil’s eyes widened, and his face betrayed a bit of relief. “Then you’ll withdraw from-“

“Never,” Yuuri deadpanned.

“Absolutely not,” Viktor added cheerfully.

“I’d rather throw myself off the roof of the palace,” Yurio sneered.

”This world is based on games,” Viktor said. “If we never play again, how does that make us any different from animals?”

Seung-gil’s jaw tightened. “Well, then I see that this was a waste of time.” He stood as the carriage came to a stop, then exited the doors first. “I will have to force you to yield.”

Viktor exited after Yuuri, who held his hand out to him. He grinned, taking his hand and carefully stepping down from the carriage.

“My prince,” he crooned, eyes shining with amusement. Yuuri laughed.

“Your king, soon,” Yuuri corrected with a wink.

Viktor narrowed his eyes playfully. “Who said that you would be king? Maybe I would like to be king!”

Yuuri let out another laugh. “That’s an argument for later, Vitya.”

The three walked into the building and down a long corridor, lit only by torches and surrounded only by the sound of their footsteps on cobblestone.

“I get why I don’t want to give up the crown to that punk,” Yurio said, once they were out of earshot of any guards or servants. “But why are you two so invested in this? To be honest, his proposal didn’t sound bad.”

“Oh, Yurio, my sweet naïve student,” Viktor sighed dramatically. “For one thing, what proof is there that what he said was true?”

“Two,” Yuuri tacked on, “if he’s so sure he’s going to win, why would he ask us to withdraw?”

“Three!” Viktor continued, “Even if what he said was true, how could we let this nation be run by a guy dumb enough to tell potential spies everything?”

“I suppose,” Yurio said, frowning. “But what do you plan on doing for this?”

“For now?” Viktor smiled. “We’re just going to have to see what the game is.”

They faced the grand looking doors.

“Are you ready for this, Eros?” Viktor asked, with a teasing tilt of his head.

“Always, Agape,” Yuuri said, sliding his hand into Viktor’s.

Viktor gave it a squeeze. “The time for you and Seung-gil and everyone to stop selling humanity short is here,” he declared, determinedly. Then, he threw open the doors.

They walked out to a round balcony overlooking a large chessboard. Seung-gil stood on an identical balcony across from them.

“Chess?” Viktor said, exchanging a look with Yuuri. He looked just as surprised; they hadn’t thought it would be _this_ easy.

“Yes,” Seung-gil answered. “But it’s no ordinary game of chess. The pieces are sentient. They will do as you order.”

“Very well,” Viktor said. “Yuuri?”

Yuuri nodded, eyes set on the board before them. “Chess is no different than tic-tac-toe,” he quipped, before stepping forward. He tried to let go of Viktor's hand, but he tightened his grip suddenly. Yuuri looked back at him, confused.

“Viktor?”

Instead of answering, Viktor looked at their opponent with an easy-going smile. “Say, Yuuri and I can rotate mid-game, right?” he asked. “After all, the two of us form one player, always. And you have a clear advantage here, knowing how to play.”

“What about me?” Yurio demanded.

“You watch, apprentice,” Viktor said, smiling still. “You’ve still got a lot to learn.”

“Do whatever,” Seung-gil said, sounding indifferent.

“Viktor?” Yuuri said, again. He was frowning, and beginning to look unsure of himself. “Do you think that I can’t-“

Viktor immediately took his other hand. “Don’t,” he said, firmly. “You’re the best chess player to have ever lived, but this isn’t ordinary chess. Better be safe than sorry, after all.”

Yuuri nodded, relieved. “Okay,” he said. “We’ll work together, as always.”

“Always,” Viktor agreed. He kissed him on the cheek, and let go of his hands.

Yuuri turned, walking forward to the edge of the balcony.

“Finished with the pep talk?” Seung-gil asked, sounding bored. “Feel free to go first.”

 _There’s that hubris again_ , Viktor thought.

“Let the challenge begin!” the minister shouted.

“ _Aschente!_ ”

“D-2 to D-4,” Yuuri said, eyes locked on the board.

It was strange that Seung-gil gave them the first play, Viktor thought, frowning. In chess, the advantage was always leant to the player who made the first move.

“G-7, forward,” Seung-gil ordered. The pawn fell forward and shifted three spaces.

“What?” Yurio demanded, practically spewing fire. “That’s against the rules!”

“I told you, these pieces are sentient,” Seung-gil said with a smirk.

“So they reflect their player’s personality,” Viktor realized. “Their charisma, their leadership skills. And their potential as king.”

“Yes,” Seung-gil said, looking at them with a calculating stare. “A perfect game to decide who will be king.”

“Knight to C-3.”

“F-7, forward.”

“E-2 to E-4.”

“F-5, take her place.”

Yuuri was clutching the balcony with tightened hands. Like with every game of chess, Yuuri was completely concentrated, laser focused in on the game. It was this kind of focus that helped him beat three gods, Viktor thought, with a smirk.

“C-3, take E-4.”

“H-2 to H-3.”

“Knight, take H-4.”

“Queen, H-5. Check.”

Yurio let out a gasp of surprise. “So soon?” he said, marveling. “Seung-gil isn’t playing by the rules of chess, but Yuuri’s still beating him.”

“It’s not over yet,” Viktor said, “but I’m not surprised.”

“F-2 to F-4.”

Nothing moved.

“F-2 to F-4,” Yuuri repeated, his shoulders growing tense.

“It’s not moving,” Yurio said, looking confused.

“Just as I feared,” Viktor said, with a sigh. “Sometimes the pieces won’t move, because no soldier would walk into a spot he knows will get him killed. Not unless they had something to fight for.”

“But, that’s the whole point of chess!” Yurio protested. “If that’s the case, then-”

“Yeah,” Viktor agreed, grimly. “Yuuri won’t be able to sacrifice his pieces.”

Yuuri tightened his grip on the balcony’s banister, eyes flickering throughout the board. Viktor could see the wheels in his brain turning as he began rerouting the pieces, trying to form a new strategy with this new information that would account for no sacrifices.

But chess was a game of strategy, of skill, and most importantly, of sacrifice. It was _impossible_.

“What will you do?” Seung-gil taunted. “You’re running out of time.”

“Knight, take H-7.”

Nothing, again.

Yuuri inhaled sharply. “A-2 to A-3.”

The pawn moved forward.

“Bishop, forward. Take out the enemy knight,” Seung-gil commanded.

The black bishop struck, causing the white knight to crumble into pieces.

Yuuri was trembling. Viktor frowned, wanting to reach out, but knowing at this point, it wouldn’t do much other than break his concentration.

“Knight, take H-5.”

Nothing. A beat of silence.

The sunlight was dimming, no longer shining through the stain-glass window. Viktor grit his teeth.

“D-4 to D-5.”

Again nothing.

“A-3… bishop…” His voice faltered.

Viktor tensed. “Yuuri…”

“I’m sorry…” Yuuri whispered. “I can’t… I lost.”

He didn’t have to see him to know that there were tears rolling down Yuuri’s cheeks. Viktor stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Yuuri tightly.

“Hey,” he soothed, “It’s okay. I think it’s my turn to tap in at this point.”

“Yuuri...” Yurio murmured, sounding stunned.

Viktor felt Yuuri nod against his chest. Then, he took a deep breath, and with the most commanding voice possible, he shouted, “Attention! All forces!”

It had been a last-ditch effort, of course, but he was surprised that it worked. His pieces turned to look up at him, seemingly shocked. He could hear Yuuri’s sharp inhale of surprise.

“Everyone who fights in this battle shall, by the king’s authority, will be excused from further military duty upon victory!” he declared. “And exempt from taxes for life!”

Yuuri’s head snapped over to look at him in shock. Viktor spared a moment to look at him and wink.

“If you die fighting for your king, I will ensure your families will be provided for! You will receive financial compensation, so long as you fight for your family, your loved ones, and you come home alive!”

It lit a fire under the white pieces, lifting their weapons in the air and roaring in approval.

“That’s why you wanted to switch in,” Yuuri said, pulling Viktor to his side. He stared up at him with a watery smile. “It’s a strategy game. Do you have it from here?

Viktor smiled, reaching down to take Yuuri’s hand in his. “Of course, _solnyshko_. You’ll be here to help me?”

“Always,” Yuuri assured him.

“Then I’ve got this,” Viktor declared, letting go of his hand. Yuuri offered a small smile, then took a step back to stand next to Yurio. “Pawn squad six! The enemy is advancing from the front line! Strike first and fast!”

They watched a pawn sprint forward and take out one of the dark pieces with a single swipe.

“What?!” Seung-gil shouted in fury. “You can’t do that!”

“Cavalry squad two! Take advantage of the opening the pawns have given you!” Then, he lowered his gaze at the two pieces directly under the balcony. “And you, king and queen! Get out to the front line!”

“It’s my turn!” Seung-gil protested, helplessly.

Viktor looked up now, grinning wildly. “In a real war, what idiot waits for turns?”

Seung-gil growled. “Pawn squad! Form a defensive line!”

Viktor laughed mockingly. “Your king and queen are cowards! Hiding behind their own soldiers. A real king would lead! What kind of ruler sits behind his men, relaxing while they lay down their lives?”

“Holy shit he’s really getting into this,” Viktor heard Yurio mutter from behind him.

“Just let the drama queen have his fun,” Yuuri muttered back.

“Comrades, this is a battle for the heart of Elchea! The city is the final bastion for the entirety of humanity, it is this fight that will determine all of our fates!” Viktor shouted, slamming his hands on the railing. “Can we trust the nation’s crown to a man like that? Or would you fight for your true queen?”

Viktor turned, and took Yuuri by the hand again, lifting their hands in the air together. “Your queen, who poured his heart and soul into this game and shed tears to bring you victory! Now, are you cowards, or are you soldiers?!”

“What the-“ Seung-gil was stunned at the roaring response from the chess pieces.

“Knights, bishops, and rooks, show us your bravery and support the pawns.”

“This is impossible!” Seung-gil protested, looking furious.

Viktor grinned. “It should be,” he agreed. “You’re using Elf magic to boost your troops’ morale, aren’t you? You could just say you have more charisma, but we have proof.”

Seung-gil scoffed. “How’s that?”

“No wise king in history has used tyranny to force obedience,” Viktor declared. “People fight for what they believe in, not out of fear. And if they believe in their king, in their queen, then they will fight for them with their dying breath!”

Seung-gil took a step back, shaken. Viktor watched the dark pieces get slashed and cut down with ease, until Seung-gil clenched his fist.

“King to E-6!” Seung-gil roared.

As a white pawn stepped forward to strike, an opposing rook lifted its sword. Suddenly, the white pawn turned dark, matching the color of the opposing side.

“What just happened?” Yurio demanded, leaning over the balcony.

Another pawn charged forward, attempting to strike at another dark piece. It turned black as well, and Viktor’s eyes widened as he realized what was happening.

“Retreat!” he shouted, trying to keep the panic out of his voice. “The enemy is using brainwashing magic! Don’t let them touch you!”

“What’s happening?” Yuuri cried.

“All forces, advance!” Seung-gil commanded, smirking now.

“Shit, shit, shit,” Viktor muttered, clutching the railing. This wasn’t good; he had underestimated Seung-gil. Some mentor he made, making such a foolish error in front of his new student-

“Viktor,” Yuuri murmured, giving his hand a squeeze. Viktor looked back, meeting Yuuri’s warm, determined eyes. “I believe in you.”

Viktor nodded, face hardening in determination.

“Queen, take the king’s head,” Seung-gil crowed, triumphant.

Viktor’s eyes widened suddenly, leaping into action; he knew what to do.

“This is checkmate,” Seung-gil said, smirking.

The queen lifted her sword, about to strike down at the white king piece, when Viktor threw himself in front of the attack.

“Queen!” he shouted, shaking slightly as the sword stopped just above his head. He let out a breath of relief, and heard the cries of surprise from Yuuri and Yurio above him.

“Viktor?!” Yurio yelled, “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Viktor took a deep breath, summoning all the courage possible and laying on the charm as thick as possible. “Queen, put down the sword, I beseech you. You are the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen!”

“ _Excuse_ me?!” Yuuri shrieked. Viktor winced a bit; he would pay for that one later. Nevertheless, he persisted.

“My queen, please, consider the value of continuing in service to your king. A king who would brainwash your soldiers, and use your men like they are tools. And force you to bear the brunt of the assault? Is he worthy of your sword, your bravery?”

“He is so lucky this is a game,” Viktor heard Yuuri grumble.

“I beg of you to reconsider, think of your people, those who you must protect!” Viktor finished. A moment of ringing silence, then, the sword fell from the queen’s hands and the dark piece turned white.

“That- that’s impossible!” Seung-gil sputtered.

“Romance simulation games.” Viktor grinned, standing up straight now. “And Yuuri said they were a waste of time.”

“They _are_ a waste of time!” Yuuri shouted back. “You have a boyfriend, a _very willing_ boyfriend!”

“He’s turning things around, who cares?” Yurio crowed, delighted.

“Not yet,” Yuuri said, as Viktor began to climb back up to the balcony. “The enemy is still using magic that brainwashes others. This doesn’t change anything, but it bought us some time.” Viktor stepped in line with Yuuri again.

“We need to wait for him to make a move,” Viktor said, quietly. His fists tightened, heart beating in his chest. “Otherwise…”

Yuuri pulled him close, eyes glinting. “Viktor,” he said, quietly. “We’ve got this. Just be patient.”

They stared down Seung-gil, who was still staring at the board in shock. Then, his face turned into a scowl.

“Knight, strike down the traitor queen!” he roared.

Nothing happened.

“Knight!” he shouted, desperately.

The now white queen turned to face the dark knight piece, who fell to his knees and dropped the sword. It, too, turned into a white piece.

Viktor grinned. “That’s it!” he said, “That’s how we’ll beat him. Yuuri, I need you to maneuver the pieces just enough to keep them from touching Seung-gil’s pieces.”

“Got it,” he said, jaw set with determination.

“What are you planning?” Yurio demanded.

Viktor laughed. “Didn’t I tell you, Yurio? There’s more than one way to win a game. Even without fighting, you can win.”

“What’s going on?” Seung-gil screeched, leaning forward on the railing. “What did you do?”

“Don’t you see?” Viktor taunted. “You cruelly ordered your knight to slay his own queen! The very queen he was sworn to protect. My queen-“

“Yes?” Yuuri asked, looking at him.

“Oh- uh, sorry, love, not you,” Viktor said, blinking sheepishly. Yuuri gave him a sharp look, then turned back to the game at hand. “My queen, I cannot ask you, or the knights who lowered their swords out of love for you, to turn against your men. But it is clear that your king is mad! He would make your own knights turn against you. He is not fit to lead, only you are capable of leading your people now!”

He paused, for dramatic effect. “It is up to you now, my queen.”

The white queen lit up with a red flare. Seung-gil gasped, staring at the pieces in shock, while a smile spread across Viktor’s face.

“I’m honored to see you take action, my queen!” The other pieces that had once been black now turned a fiery red. “And you righteous men, who stand proudly by your queen, who overcame this magic. No one but you can stand against your tyrannical king!”

“It- it can’t be…” Yurio muttered. “They’re rebelling! You introduced a third element, but why?”

Viktor chuckled, while Yuuri placed a hand on his shoulder. “Didn’t you hear us before?” Yuuri asked, with a small smile. “We’ll win without fighting.”

His words seemed to strike a chord in the young man. Yurio blinked back a couple tears, reaching for his empty wrist. “Grandpa…” he murmured. Yuuri gave him a comforting squeeze as Viktor turned back to the chessboard.

“We do not fight for bloodshed! We fight for what everyone wants, peace!” Viktor declared.

“All forces support the red queen’s knights. Don’t let anyone die,” Yuuri added, lifting his chin.

“Traitors!” Seung-gil snarled.

“The red pieces are protecting them, and the black pieces aren’t fighting back, because those are their former allies,” Yurio realized.

“Hey, crazy king!” Viktor called over, catching Seung-gil’s attention. “Don’t you know? It’s possible to end a war before the death of a king. You have nowhere else to go. Surrender now.”

“Viktor...” Yurio murmured, his voice suddenly soft and vulnerable. Viktor spared a glance back at the teenager, whose eyes were wide and watery.

Seung-gil laughed. “Surrender? I’m not handing over this country, never to you. It belongs to us!” He straightened, sneering at them. “Forces! Bring me the enemy’s head, kill the traitors! I don’t care if it kills you! March!”

The helmets glowed as the dark pieces began to march forward.

Yuuri was frowning. “When you push a weakened enemy too far this happens.”

“I know…”

Yurio drooped against the railing, an unreadable expression on his face. “It didn’t work,” he murmured. “Winning without fighting.”

Viktor sighed, a little bitterly. “And that’s why I did it,” he said, making Yurio’s head snap to look at him in confusion.

The visor of the king’s piece cracked.

“Look!” Yuuri whispered.

More cracks formed, trailing up the body and around the king’s piece.

Viktor chuckled. “Oppression, ruling by fear, dictatorships… it’s strange, isn’t it? All throughout history, these rulers always meet the same end, by the same kind of people. They don’t die in combat. They die at the hands of someone close to them.”

The black king shattered suddenly, crumbling to pieces before their very eyes.

“No…” Seung-gil whispered, falling to his knees in defeat.

Viktor sighed. “Sorry, our world isn’t as nice as this world is. So when it comes to warfare and killing, we have the advantage here.”

The minister, still watching their game, was stunned. “The winner is… Eros and Agape!”

Yuuri jumped into Viktor’s arms, holding him tightly and kissing him deeply.

“Congratulations, my king,” Yuuri murmured, once they pulled apart.

Viktor grinned back, the adrenaline high coursing through his veins. “All thanks to you, my queen.”


	4. Chapter 4 - Yurio

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yurio wasn't sure if these new rulers of Elchea were going to be their saviors or their doom; every time he thinks he has them figured out, they do something to surprise him.

_“I believe that someone will appear. Someone with the wisdom to know the strength that comes from being weak. Someone who can face true strength because they are the weakest, not in spite of. That person will be the hope of Imanity.”_

_Grandpa…_ Yurio thought, eyes wet with tears.

“Here,” Viktor held out his hand. He was holding a gold watch.

Yurio gasped, clutching it. “Grandpa’s watch…” he whispered.

“This is what your grandfather believed in,” Yuuri said, with a smile. “He wasn’t wrong to believe in humanity. And now no one can call him a fool.”

Yurio’s eyes welled up even more, still clutching the gold watch. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“So what scam did you use?” Seung-gil asked, walking through the doors to their balcony.

“Scam?” Viktor echoed, sounding puzzled.

Seung-gil scoffed. “You’re not going to tell me that Imanity beat Elf magic unaided, are you? Do you take me for an idiot?”

“No,” Yuuri said. “But it’s the truth.”

“Your idea wasn’t the worst,” Viktor added. “Trying to get help from the Elves.”

“Then why-“ Seung-gil snarled.

“Because,” Viktor cut in, coldly, “I don’t like the way you think. Doesn’t the idea that we can’t survive on our own, without the protection of the elves, seem humiliating?”

“But-“

“Humanity has its own way of dealing with things,” Yuuri said. “You convinced yourself that we were spies for another country. And that’s how we won. You didn’t think humans could do it on their own.”

“That’s impossible!” Seung-gil protested, hands balling into fists at his sides. “There’s no way a couple of humans can defeat magic!”

“And there’s your problem. You’re limited. But we don’t lose, ever. Whether it’s elves or gods, we never lose, so stop selling humanity so short.” Viktor was leaning forward, glaring now.

Seung-gil trembled. There was a long silence, before Seung-gil finally fell to his knees, tears rolling down his face.

Viktor, clearly having not expected this, stumbled back. Yuuri sighed.

“Oh here we go,” he grumbled. “Viktor you made him cry, good going!”

“I did not!” Viktor protested, panicking.

“Do you understand,” Seung-gil shouted, wiping tears from his face furiously, “how much trouble I went to, to get the Elves to help me?!”

“I can't deal with crying people!” Viktor yelped, holding onto Yuuri and trying to hide his much larger body behind his boyfriend.

Yurio pinched the bridge of his nose; all that genius, and Viktor was still an idiot.

* * *

**Royal Throne Room, King City District, Elchea City**

“Finally, Viktor and Yuuri have won the deciding match in the tournament. Is there no one left to challenge them?” The minister looked around, but no one in the throne room made any opposition. “Then, in accordance with the wishes of our former king, the new ruler of Elchea is…”

“Me,” Yuuri and Viktor said, at the same time.

Yurio groaned, facepalming. “Oh no…” he muttered. He could already see where this was going.

Yuuri and Viktor looked at each other.

“Um, darling,” Yuuri said, smiling sweetly, “I thought we talked about this?”

“Yes, we did, _solnyshko_ ,” Viktor replied smoothly. “And we decided that I would be king.”

“No…” Yuuri said, narrowing his eyes now. “We agreed that I would be king.”

Yurio sighed, and took a seat on one of the steps. “You should all take a seat,” he told the stunned crowd of onlookers. “This will either end in a fight or a make out session. Either way, we’ll all be here for a while.”

“Come on, _moya lyubov,_ ” Viktor laughed. “Stop playing games.”

“No, I don’t think I will,” Yuuri growled. “In fact…”

“Oh no.” Yurio buried his face into his hands.

“ _Aschente!”_

* * *

Three days.

It took them three days of non-stop playing various games to finally come to the most obvious realization possible.

“Wait,” Viktor gasped. “Why can there only be one ruler?”

“Viktor,” Yuuri groaned. “Pledge seven: conflicts between groups will be conducted by an appointed representative with absolute authority.”

“… it doesn’t say there can only be one, right?”

“… no, no it doesn’t.”

“Oh.”

“Oh.”

“… do you want to get married?”

“Yeah, yeah sure.”

Yurio banged his head into the wall and screamed.

* * *

Another day, two gold rings, and a long, heartfelt, teary-eyed proposal later, the King and Queen of Elchea were crowned.

“Well, that took a really long time,” Viktor mused. The crown sat on his head crookedly, shining in the stream of sunlight from the window and standing out on his silver hair.

“It’s your own damn fault!” Yurio shouted. Neither Viktor nor Yuuri looked up from their phone, which was being held by both of them. “You’re supposed to be the geniuses here!”

“Hm, well, that’s over and done with,” Viktor said with a yawn.

“Will you two do your jobs now?” Yurio demanded. “We haven’t had a ruler in so long, our domestic policies are all outdated!”

Yuuri leaned his head against Viktor’s shoulder. They were both curled up, cuddling together on the large, cushioned throne. It was gross, in Yurio’s opinion.

“Can’t you handle all the domestic stuff, Yurio?” Yuuri asked, eyes not looking up from the game.

“I’m trying to save our equipment, Yuuri,” Viktor murmured, pointedly ignoring Yurio. “Don’t use the traps.”

“I’m trying to be efficient,” Yuuri argued.

Yurio had quite honestly had enough of these two idiots. He reached forward and snatched the device out of their hands, seething. “There are rumors that Elchea’s decline is due to some ministers collaborating with other countries, and as the new king and queen, you need to make sure-“

“Oh, that’s an easy fix,” Viktor said, blinking at him innocently.

Yurio watched, stunned, as they gathered all the ministers into the throne room. Yuuri stood up in front of his throne, leaving Viktor absentmindedly still tapping at the device, and said, “We’re going to play rock, paper, scissors, and you’re going to lose. I’ll play scissors, and you’ll all play paper. Losers will forever be forbidden from submitting false reports, or arbitrary messages.”

Yurio’s jaw dropped. They weren’t just intelligent idiots, he realized, they were also creative ones too.

“We’re using the pledges against them,” Viktor explained, not even looking up from his game. “Yuuri came up with the idea the other day. This way, there’s no spies.”

“Ready?” Yuuri called out.

“ _Aschente!”_

Later, they sat around the round table in the meeting room, overlooking the throne room.

“As you can see,” the Minister of Agriculture said, grimly, “our country’s provisions are in dire straits.”

“Yeah?” Viktor mused, reaching for his tablet, tapping idly on it until he found he was looking for. “Okay, here’s what we’ll do. We’ll introduce crop rotation-based farming. Yuuri?”

He picked up a quill and began scribbling on the paper as Yuuri, perched in Viktor’s lap, as always, reached for the tablet and began reading it, eyes scanning the screen. “In one field you’ll have wheat, root vegetables, barley, and pasturage.” He adjusted his glasses and put the tablet down. “Rotate in that order.”

“Yes sirs!”

Yurio stared, numb with shock. Generations of agricultural troubles, and the two could fix the problem with a mere glance through that tablet?

“What are government bonds?” the Minister of the Treasury asked, later that day.

Yuuri yawned, leaning against Viktor’s chest. “We’ll explain later,” he promised. “That’s a four-year degree worth of explanations. For now, just issue them, and make the banks buy them. That’ll give us a budget.”

“Yes sir!”

“Okay,” Yurio said, frustratedly following the newly crowned couple down the long corridor. “How do you know what to do? I’ve studied civics my entire life, I’ve been groomed to take after my grandfather for years!”

“I usually play all the domestic stuff while playing civilization simulation games,” Viktor explained.

“And I was an economics major,” Yuuri said.

“Plus, I downloaded a bunch of textbooks and stuff onto this tablet when we went on a quiz game binge,” Viktor added. "Though, we got bored after winning so many times."

They reached the balcony, gazing out at the crowd of their people.

“I guess you’re dressed the part…” Yurio said, reluctantly, eyeing the two in their matching suits. Their golden crowns sat upon their heads, glinting in the sunlight magnificently.

“Ready to go, love?” Yuuri asked, batting his eyelashes up at Viktor.

“As I’ll ever be,” Viktor said, pulling him into a gentle kiss. While Yurio mimed gagging, the couple stepped out to greet the huge crowd of people.

 _Those two are idiots,_ Yurio thought, sighing. _But…_

“Beloved citizens, my fellow Imanity, we live in a world where war is forbidden by the Ten Pledges. Yet,” Viktor spoke, his voice echoing through the streets of their city. “we’ve lost again and again. All that remains is us, Elchea, our last city.”

“We ask you now,” Yuuri continued, chin lifted. He wasn’t as charismatic a speaker as Viktor, he was soft-spoken at the best of times and anxious at the worst, but it was important that the city hear both their new king and queen speak, as Yurio had insisted. “Why is that so? Is it because the last king failed? Or because we are the lowest rank? Or because we can’t use magic? Because we are helpless and fated to die out?”

“No!” Viktor’s voice boomed, catching everyone’s already enraptured attention. “In the great war, gods, Elves, Warbeasts, all races fought. And we fought among them, and we survived still. This entire continent was once ruled by humans, and why is that? We can’t use magic like the Elves, we lack the physical strength of the Warbeasts, and we don’t live as long as the Flügel, so how could we have ruled the continent? Maybe it was because we humans specialize in violence?”

Yuuri spoke now, seamlessly following the king’s speech. “We fought, and yet we survived, because we were weak! At some point, in every world, the strong polish their fangs while the weak polish their wisdom. Why have we been driven to this state? It is because the strong have used the Ten Pledges to become stronger, to become wiser, while we, the weak, have developed our own wisdom and strategies. The power to survive. But then the strong stole even that. Which is where we lay today.”

A long moment of silence.

Viktor’s voice was softer, here, but still as firm as ever. “Why do you bow your heads?” he asked, addressing the crowds of their people. Yurio’s head snapped up to look at him in shock. “We are the weak! We always have been. Nothing has changed. The strong may seek to use our weapons, but they will never master them, not like us. Because at the very heart of our weapons is a cowardice born of abject weakness. This cowardice has given us the wisdom to evade magic. It has given us the wisdom born from learning and experience, to predict the future itself. We are the weak, we are the proud weak, who throughout history, have torn the throats of those who sit and boast of their strength. We now declare, as Elchea’s 205th king-

“-and queen,” Yuuri continued, both now holding up their hands in the air in a solemn vow.

“-that we have ascended to the throne,” they said together, holding hands. There was a bright light in front of them, taking the shape of a small chess piece.

“Is that…” Yurio gaped. “The race piece!”

“Yes,” the minister murmured next to him. “Given to those with absolute authority, who represent an entire race.”

 _They’re idiots, but they’re also geniuses,_ Yurio thought, grudgingly. _Maybe grandpa was right, maybe these two are who Imanity was waiting for all along._

“We shall live as the weak, fight as the weak, and as the weak, we will destroy the strong. Such is our pledge,” Yuuri declared.

“So we have been, and so we shall be going forward.” Viktor lifted their joined hands in the air. “We are the weakest race, and it’s because we were born with nothing that we can become anything.”

The crowds burst into cheers and applause, Yurio included, wiping tears away.

“The game is on,” Viktor said, with the race piece still shining brightly in front of them. “You’ve all suffered so much, haven’t you? The wait is over, my fellow Imanity. Elchea will reach out to the other countries, and declare war!”

_Or maybe they’re both just a couple of idiots!_

Yuuri and Viktor both reached for the race piece, clutching it tightly together.

“What?!” Yurio shrieked.

“Fire the cannons of revolution!” Viktor continued, “These borders were once ours…”

“And we’re taking them back!” Yuuri finished, to the roaring approval by the crowds.

“What have you done?!” Yurio shouted, once the king and queen had stepped away from the screaming crowds and back into the dim corridor.

“Calm down, Yurio!” Viktor beamed.

“Calm down?!” Yurio bellowed. “You just declared war on the entire world! Are you trying to get us all killed?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Yuuri said, dismissively. Yurio sputtered; he had initially thought Yuuri was the reasonable one between the two, but it turned out that they were _both_ insane. “How will it look to the other nations that we took out the Elves?”

Yurio took a few calming breaths, trying not to scream more. “They’ll… they’ll think we’re backed by an even more powerful race,” he said, slowly. “So… until they know what race that is, they won’t attack us.”

“Very good!” Viktor clapped his hands together, like an excitable child. “So the whole world starts jumping at shadows, and no one makes any rash moves. It strengthens our power base, and we don’t even have to lift a finger.”

“You thought that far ahead?” Yurio asked, weakly.

“Of course,” they answered in unison.

“Now come on, Yurio,” Yuuri said, holding a hand out for him. “Let’s go back home, hm? I could use a bath.”

* * *

**Royal Chambers, King City District, Elchea City**

“The royal chambers,” Yurio said, quietly. “This is where you’ll be staying.”

“This belonged to your grandfather?” Viktor asked, evaluating the room.

“Yes,” he answered, grudgingly.

“You should have it, then,” Yuuri said, frowning. “It wouldn’t be right…”

“It’s tradition,” Yurio grunted, averting his eyes. “Just take it, will you?”

There was a pause. He glanced up, to see Yuuri and Viktor looking at each other.

“For now,” Viktor amended. “I’m too tired to argue today.”

“Oh, look at those books!” Yuuri suddenly gasped, taking off into a sprint at the huge book cases lining the wall next to the bed. He ran a finger down the spines before finally plucking one off the shelf. Viktor chuckled, sitting against the headboard of the bed.

“So we’ve gone from a tiny, one bedroom apartment in Tokyo to a crappy inn, to Yurio’s quarters, and to the royal chambers,” Viktor mused, watching Yuuri flip through the book. “Quite a transition for a few days.”

Yuuri hopped onto the bed, leaning against Viktor’s chest while he opened the book.

“Yurio,” Viktor requested, pointing at the sheets at the foot of the bed. “Come join us.”

Yurio hesitated, but sighed. “Alright,” he said, reluctantly, climbing onto the soft sheets and sitting cross legged across from the pair.

“The Flügel,” Yuuri said, halting his page flipping.

“What about them?” Yurio asked, wrinkling his nose.

Yuuri held up the book, showing a chapter about the Flügel. “They live long lives, have a high aptitude for magic, and inhabit a giant Phantasma called Avant Heim that floats in the sky.”

“Yes,” Yurio said, nodding. “What that book won’t tell you, though, is that they have a strong thirst for knowledge. They play games to collect books from across the world.”

“It would be useful to have them on our side,” Viktor mused. “We could bait them, maybe using our knowledge from the other world.”

“I don’t think-“ Yurio began, warily, when suddenly, something _changed._

“What the…” Yuuri murmured, reaching for Yurio to pull him closer, protectively. Yurio looked around in confusion.

There were a few giggles, and triplets appeared from around the bedpost. Yurio gasped, clutching onto Yuuri in shock.

“Looks like things are getting pretty fun, huh?” Axel laughed.

“The Triplet Gods,” Yurio breathed, then turned to look at Viktor and Yuuri in shock. “You two idiots were telling the truth.”

“Of course!” Loop said, smiling widely. Then, Lutz raised a hand and snapped.

Suddenly, they were in a golden bubble, in the air above the palace.

“Oh no, not this again!” Viktor groaned, while Yurio screamed, clinging onto him.

“Well, do you like this world?” Lutz asked, as they floated carefully down to a flat portion of the rooftop.

The bubble popped, and Viktor immediately pulled Yuuri into a hug. “Yeah,” he admitted. “You’ve got the right idea, for sure.”

“Our enemies use magic, but we can’t,” Yuuri mused. “Our territory is just one city. So things are looking pretty grim. And we can’t afford a single loss. Yet…”

“It’s the best!” Viktor declared, smiling.

“You’re insane,” Yurio said, shakily. “You two…”

“It seems we weren’t mistaken in bringing you two here, and making sure you befriended Yurio!” Axel beamed.

Yurio’s eyes widened. “You mean… this was meant to happen?”

“Of course,” Loop giggled. “I mean, you made it happen, in your own way too.”

“We don’t favor any individual race, but I told you two before, everything here is decided by games,” Lutz continued, winking.

Yurio was confused by what she meant by that, but a glance to his left told him Viktor and Yuuri understood.

“So,” Viktor hazarded a guess, “even the One True Gods. It’s decided by a game.”

The triplets squealed in excitement while Yurio’s head snapped to look at him. 

“Yes!” Axel grinned. “That’s why we made it sixteen races.”

Yurio’s eyes widened. “The same number of pieces on each side of a chess game,” he gasped.

“Defeating all the races gives you the right to challenge God, am I right?” Yuuri realized.

“You two adapt so quickly, it’s hard to believe you’re from another word,” Loop said, admiringly.

“Thank you,” Viktor said, smirking. “But why do you three seem so happy about it? Yuuri and I make it our policy to top every game we play.”

“That’s exactly why we were so sure you’d try to earn the right to challenge us,” Lutz declared, leaning in with a wink.

“Don’t forget,” Yuuri teased, “we’ve already beaten you at chess once.”

“True,” Axel acquiesced. “But we won’t lose next time.”

“You’ve never lost before have you?” Viktor guessed. “The Gods of Play were so upset at their first loss, that you brought us here, to make things more interesting. To play us again.”

The Triplets laughed, clearly pleased by Viktor’s conclusion.

“We sure were right to choose you!” Lutz exclaimed.

“Thank you, then,” Yuuri spoke up. “For letting us be reborn into this world where we belong.”

“Thank you,” Viktor echoed.

“Well, bye bye for now!” Loop said, twirling a bit midair as she and her sisters turned to leave.

“We’ll see you, on the other side of a chess board,” Yuuri promised.

Lutz laughed. “We’re looking forward to it.”

Then, they disappeared.

“Holy shit, what just happened?” Yurio breathed, leaning against the roof. He let out a hysterical laugh. “It’s going to keep being this crazy with you two here, isn’t it?”

“You can count on that,” Viktor said with a grin.

“We’ll start by conquering the world, but our ultimate goal will be the Triplets.” Yuuri said, pulling out his phone to type into the to do list.

“You’re insane,” Yurio said, again. This time, however, he didn’t feel as horrified by it. Instead, a flame of hope was ignited. “But… I believe in you two.”

They gave him matching grins.

“Yurio!” Viktor cried, delighted.

“Don’t make me regret this,” Yurio grumbled.

* * *

 _I regret everything,_ Yurio thought, darkly.

He had thought, foolishly, that these two would be the ones to save Elchea, foolish goal of defeating God aside. He had thought that they were serious in taking Yurio on as a protégé. However, ever since they took the throne, they simply threw the paper work at him and the other ministers. Then, they would spend the whole day reading and playing games.

Yurio kicked down the door to the master bedroom. “Hey, you idiots!” he yelled. The room was empty, aside from a single note on the bed in Imanity.

_We’re moving. If you need something done, ask Yurio._

After numerous interrogations, running around, and several counts of blackmail and threats of bodily harm and/or arson, Yurio managed to track the idiot king and queen to a small room, rented out in a dark alleyway of the slums of Elchea. The sign at the door read, _Viktor and Yuuri’s Room._

“You idiots!” he roared, kicking down the door in one fell swoop.

The two were sleeping, curled on the ground. Yuuri had his head lying on Viktor’s chest, and the blanket was half tangled between their legs. Yurio yanked the blanket off of them and then the curtains off the wall, letting in the sunlight.

“Wake up, you two,” he demanded. “It’s time you did your damn job, as king and queen and as my mentor!”

Yuuri yawned, sitting up a bit. He looked around, disoriented. “What time is it?” he asked, reaching for his glasses.

“It’s the middle of the afternoon!” Yurio snapped, while Viktor groaned and reached to pull Yuuri closer to him. “And you have all these treasured books everywhere, you’d think they were trash!”

“You can take them back to the royal chambers,” Yuuri told him. “It’s yours now anyways.”

“I told you already,” Yurio said with a huff, while gathering the books carefully. “It’s your room now. It’s been the king’s chambers for generations now.”

Viktor finally sat up, but didn’t let go of his fiancé. “The bed’s tilted in there,” he said, petulantly. “Yuuri rolled right out of bed the other day. It’s very hard to sleep in there.”

Yurio pinched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t have time for this,” he growled. “I demand a game!”

This piqued Viktor’s interest. “Oh?” he asked, delighted. “What game did you have in mind?”

“Tch,” Yurio looked away, scoffing. “It’s your right to pick, asshole.”

“Hmmm,” Viktor mused, resting his chin on the top of Yuuri’s head. “You can pick, actually. I don’t mind.”

Yurio tried to smother a smirk. “Fine,” he said, “Blackjack.”

“What are we betting?” Viktor asked, curious.

Yurio puffed up. “If I win, you two have to take your jobs more seriously and stop sleeping past noon! And you’ll stop passing the paperwork to me, like I’m your secretary or something.”

“That’s all?” Viktor cocked his head to the side. “Okay.”

Yurio withdrew a deck of cards, shuffling it expertly. “I’ll be the dealer, and you’ll be the player.”

Viktor’s face fell. “Oh,” he said, disappointed. He took a seat across from Yurio at the table, while Yuuri fell back asleep, wrapped around him like a koala.

“He already fell asleep?!” Yurio screamed. “Blackjack’s a game of complete chance, so stop acting like you’ve already won! Now get ready, _aschente!”_

“ _Aschente_ ,” Viktor said, boredly.

Yurio smirked, shuffling the cards again. He had planned for this, spending several hours practicing how he would cheat. Now, it was just a matter of taking Viktor down a peg.

The game passed by quickly. At first, Yurio was winning, as expected. Despite this, Viktor was still looking disinterested in the end.

“Stand,” Viktor finally decided, tossing his cards carelessly on the table. He wrapped his now free hand around Yuuri’s waist.

Yurio’s eyes widened. _Did he give up? He didn’t even look at his cards._

He flipped over the last card, trying not to smirk. “Then it’s over.”

Viktor dropped the rest of his cards in favor of wrapping them around Yuuri’s waist, completely enveloping him now in a hug. “Yeah, it’s over,” he agreed.

The cards fell face up, and Yurio could barely process them.

 _That’s impossible…_ Yurio’s mouth fell open.

Yuuri opened his eyes and craned his neck over to look at the table curiously. “With a natural blackjack, you’re paid back 2.5 times your bet,” he observed. “So Viktor wins.”

“But-!” Yurio sputtered. “Why’d I have to lose again? I thought for sure-“

Viktor looked up at him with a smirk, and Yurio felt his voice falter. “I thought this game was completely up to chance, Yurio,” he said. “Card counting, however, certainly helps your odds.”

“What?” Yurio asked, confused.

“You think of the cards as values,” Yuuri explained. “Cards between two and six are plus one, ten and above are minus one, and seven through nine are zero. You count the numbers of cards that have been played to find the numerical probability of what will be played next.”

“Unbelievable,” Yurio muttered, holding his head in despair. “Isn’t that cheating? Using math?”

Viktor smirked. “You mean like using a forced shuffle?” he asked, innocently.

Yurio squawked in outrage. “You knew?”

“It made it easier to count,” he cheerfully informed him.

Yurio’s head made contact with the table. “You used my own cheat against me,” he groaned. “Unbelievable.”

“Not bad work though,” Viktor said, thoughtfully. “I wouldn’t have noticed if I didn’t know you would try something like that. And now you know card counting; we’ll be sure to teach it to you properly later.”

Yurio sighed, and stood up to walk toward the door.

“Where are you going?” Yuuri asked.

Yurio froze. “To work. You two proposed policies yesterday that a lot of nobles weren’t happy with, and now I’ve got to deal with them.” There was bitterness in his tone that he didn’t bother trying to filter out.

“Ah, I see,” Viktor said. “That took longer than I thought. I suppose we’ll have to act like kings for once, won’t we?”

“You can,” Yuuri mumbled, his head nestled in the crook of Viktor’s neck. “I’m queen. That excuses me, right?”

“Nope,” Viktor told him. “But I will carry you, if you’d like, _solnyshko_.”

Yuuri made a mumbling noise of agreement.

“Please tell me you’re not gonna be doing that the entire time,” Yurio groaned.

* * *

They stayed like that the entire time.

What was worse, Yurio couldn’t even get mad about it. It was clear that neither of them were focused on the poker game; Yuuri hadn’t even been _facing the table_ , and they still sent the three nobles out of the meeting room completely naked.

“You’ll regret this!” one of the men cried, holding his hands in front of his privates. His face was bright red- not that Yurio knew this, since he currently had his face buried in his hands and leaning against the table. “Don’t think we’ll forgive this insult against such prominent nobility!”

“Former prominent nobility,” Viktor corrected, smiling. “You bet your titles, land, money, and rights. And lost.”

Yurio finally deemed it safe to look up again, and was relieved to see that the men had disappeared from view. Their clothes, shoes, and golden accessories lay on the table. Viktor was twirling a gold bangle with one finger.

“Well, it’s only natural such a sudden reformation would have opponents,” Yuuri said, twisting now to drop his cards on the table. “I’m surprised it took that long.”

“As much as I love seeing idiots getting their asses handed to them,” Yurio said, frowning, “don’t you think that was a little extreme? We’ve spent months keeping them under control.”

Yuuri looked up at him, surprise and curiosity coloring his features. “Under control?”

Yurio crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back in his chair. “Grandpa was sick for a long time,” he admitted. “And he left me as Prince Regent for a long time. I used the data from large-scale experiments I had done of the royal families’ lands to distribute their rights to the major noble factions associated with the family. Then we used those nobles to keep others in check, chipped away at the smaller groups, and gradually took down the opposition’s power base.”

“Wow, Yurio,” Viktor beamed, clearly impressed. “I didn’t realize you were such a politician.”

Yurio scoffed, looking away to hide the redness growing in his cheeks. “I was groomed as the crown prince of Elchea,” he grumbled. “And anyways, fat load of good it did thanks to you two. If we’d won over those last few nobles you just sent naked and humiliated, we would have completely wiped out the opposition factions, with no blood spilled.”

“That’s amazing,” Yuuri breathed, smiling. “I’m surprised, though, Yurio. You normally are so… hot headed.”

“Hmph,” Yurio shifted. “Well, I am. I have no patience for idiots who would rather get richer and see this country fall to pieces. But when you’re right, it’s hard for people to argue with you. Besides, I graduated early at the top of my class, from the most prestigious academy in the country. And I had a lot of connections with my former classmates, most of whom were from major noble families.”

“And what is politics if not another game,” Viktor concluded, grinning proudly. “I knew we picked our protégé right, Yuuri!”

“Come to think of it,” Yuuri began, slyly, “you never called in your favor from the last game, Viktor.”

Viktor’s eyes widened as Yurio scooted his chair back.

“You’re right, Yuuri!” Viktor gasped. “And I know just what we’ll do!”

 _Oh no_ , Yurio thought. It appeared to be an increasingly common thought nowadays.

* * *

“So cute, don’t you think?” Viktor asked, cheerfully.

“I hate you both,” Yurio said, darkly. “I am going to murder the both of you, and set fire to your bodies. Then I will throw the ashes into the streets and dance in them.”

“So violent, Yurio!” he scolded.

“I think you look adorable,” Yuuri told him, as if that would help. He reached up and pet the cat ears headband on Yurio’s head. He hissed at him, earning a snicker from the older man.

“You beat me at blackjack, and your wish is for me to wear something stupid like cat ears?” Yurio demanded, slapping at Yuuri’s hands until he finally ceased petting the fuzzy headband. “What kind of a wish is that?”

“Clearly a poor one,” Viktor said, with an over dramatic sigh. “I should have wished for you to be quiet for a day.”

“People are staring,” Yurio complained, as they continued walking down the streets. “And no wonder! They probably all think I look like a Warbeast, or something.”

“Warbeast?” Yuuri asked, curious. “Fourteenth Order, right?”

“The Eastern Federation,” Viktor added, already pulling out his phone to scroll through his notes. “One of the three largest nations in the world. Possessing superior physiques and senses compared to us humans. Including a sixth sense, said to be able to read people’s minds.”

Yuuri made a noise of interest. “I want to conquer the Eastern Federation,” he declared, suddenly.

Yurio’s jaw dropped. “What-“ he began to argue, but it was clearly too late to change Yuuri’s mind.

“We will focus on them first,” Yuuri declared, “and conquer them before moving onto the rest of the world!”

Why had he _ever_ thought Yuuri was the sane one?

“Of course, my queen!” Viktor cried, typing furiously into his phone. “Anything for you.”

“You can’t be serious!” Yurio yelled, horrified. “They’re one of the three largest countries in the world!”

His perfectly valid arguments were completely ignored by the king and queen.

“But before we can conquer anything…” Viktor said. “Let’s go!”

Helplessly, Yurio followed the two most insane people he’s ever met down the streets of Elchea, trying to ignore the stares of passing pedestrians. Whatever they were trying to find, it was clear they couldn’t find it.

“All this, and nothing,” Yuuri remarked, disappointed, a little while later.

“This country is weird,” Viktor added, holding out the small paper bag full of pirozhkis he had bought from a street vendor. Yuuri took one, nodding, and bit into it.

“It’s not as good as Yurio’s,” Yuuri noted, with a pout.

“Well what do you expect,” Yurio sighed. “There’s a shortage of goods like meat and rice. It’s been going on for years, so you learn to make do with what you have.”

“You should make more when we go home,” Viktor suggested.

Yurio sputtered. He wasn’t some kind of household chef! He was the crown prince, and he was very much sick of these two constantly winning everything and making him wear these ridiculous ears.

“One more match!” he demanded. “I’ll make as many pirozhkis as you want if you win. If I win, I get a favor!”

Viktor’s face lit up. “Okay!” he readily agreed, only for Yuuri to push him out of the way.

“I’ll take this one, darling,” he said. Viktor let out a whine, while Yurio nodded.

“Okay. Then we’ll see whether the next person to go down that alley is a man or a woman.”

“Best out of ten.”

“ _Aschente!”_

Yuuri won, nine to one.

“How?” Yurio shouted, furious.

“People don’t walk down this alley willy-nilly,” Yuuri said, casually. “I just came up with a male-to-female ratio by applying data on time-based variance, occupation, and employment rates, applying the general trends I’ve observed in the area. Then, victory. Simple math.”

The rest of the day progressed like this, with Yurio insisting on a new game every half an hour or so when he came up with one he was sure he would win. Of course, he lost every time. Ladder lottery, spicy takoyaki Russian roulette, the Game of Life, and even another game of rock paper scissors. In the end, Yurio owed the couple a number of favors, as well as a plateful of pirozhkis.

Even by the time the sun was going down, Yurio was still determined. “One more match!”

Viktor looked at him, wearily. “Okay, one more.”

“And for real this time,” Yuuri groaned. “You said one more like, the past three matches, Yurio.”

“It’s complete chance. How many seconds until those birds take off!” Yurio pointed at a couple of pigeons on a ledge.

“Fine, you bet first. _Aschente_!”

“ _Aschente_. 30 seconds!” Yurio was bouncing on his heels, smirking.

“Well, then, I’ll say three seconds,” Viktor declared.

“Three-“ Yurio began in confusion, then his head snapped over to look at Yuuri, only a moment too late. He was winding up his throwing arm, then pelting a rock as hard as he could in the direction of the two birds. Just as expected, they flew off.

“That’s against the rules!” Yurio cried out, petulantly.

“You never said it was,” Viktor said with a shrug. “Just give up, Yurio.”

“I don’t understand,” Yurio said, miserably. “I can’t even win by chance…”

Yuuri put a hand on his shoulder. “There’s no such thing as chance, not really. There’s a million factors that combine and affect the outcome of a game. Invisible forces that you might not even know about. Which is why the victor is the one with the ability to control these factors, or at the very least be able to predict them.”

“And with our help,” Viktor added, slinging an arm around him. “You’ll be playing up to our standards in no time. You’re a smart kid, Yurio. And those with intelligence, with knowledge, have the power. That’s the reason you and Imanity keep losing, and the same reason we’ve hit a wall.” He said this last part bitterly.

Yurio’s eyes widened. “Hit a wall?”

“We need more information,” Yuuri explained. “We don’t know a thing about the Warbeasts, outside of this mysterious sixth sense of theirs. If it’s true that they can read minds, then it’s almost pointless to try to form a strategy to beat them.”

“We’ve read every book throughout the palace, and there are no bookstores or libraries in the town,” Viktor sat on the street corner in defeat. “Does this nation not care about knowledge at all? Your own history, your culture?”

Yurio’s eyes widened as it suddenly clicked. _Have they been actively searching for information on potential enemies since they were crowned?_

“Only an idiot would start a fight they can’t win,” Yuuri sighed. “One misstep and we’re finished. We’re not about to start something without knowing what to do- it’ll destroy everything and everyone.”

Yurio squeezed his hands into fists. _So those two weren’t just fooling around. They’re trying to come up with a strategy to save everyone. They really have shouldered the fate of all three million Imanity._

“We should thank you, though, Yurio,” Viktor added, thoughtfully. “You’ve been a lot of help, with implementing our policies and ensuring there wasn’t too much resistance to our reforms.”

“Thanks, Yurio,” Yuuri agreed. “I think we’ll be great at working together from now on!”

Yurio swallowed. “I think I know how to get you that knowledge you need.”

Both of their eyes widened. “What?!”

“About five years ago,” Yurio said, darkly, “a Flügel showed up in the National Elchea Library. It… it beat my grandfather in a game and won the library and everything in it.”

“You gambled your people’s knowledge?!” Viktor sounded horrified.

“And _lost?!_ ” Yuuri echoed his tone, eyes wide. “That’s humanity’s only weapon!”

“It was my grandpa!” Yurio snapped back. “And clearly losing is a common trend of his, okay?” He sounded bitter.

Yuuri softened, and sighed. “Let’s go,” he said. “And you can tell us more about the Flügel on the way there.”

“They’re the Sixth Order of the Exceed. They were soldiers, created during the ancient war to kill the gods,” Yurio explained, as they walked toward the library. “You guys aren’t seriously going to try to challenge it, right?”

“The knowledge that this god-killer has about the world is our one chance at making it,” Viktor insisted.

Yurio deflated; well, he had tried. “The Flügel only plays one game,” he warned them. “If the records are correct. And it’s never lost.”

“You can leave, if you want, Yurio,” Viktor said, for once serious. They stood at the entrance of the library, looking up at the tall double doors.

“No way,” Yurio snapped, lifting his head defiantly. “I’m part of the team now, aren’t I?!” His voice faltered a bit at the end, unsure.

“Of course you are,” Yuuri said, softly. “On Love-“

“ _Storge_ ,” Viktor finished, smiling. 

Yurio squinted at him, confused. “What does that mean?”

Yuuri just smiled. “We’ll tell you later.”

“Fine,” he grumbled. “Are we doing this or what, then? You two can’t get rid of me that easily!” 

“Very well, then,” Viktor nodded. “Let the games begin, then.”

With that, they opened the grand doors to the library.


	5. Chapter 5 - Yuuri

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri's not sure he likes this Flugel, whose interest has been piqued by Viktor.

**Library of Elchea, The Kingdom of Elchea**

The Flügel was not what Yuuri had expected, to be honest. He was tall, about Viktor’s height. He had blonde hair, though Yuuri could make out dark roots. His eyelashes were long, enunciating his bright green eyes. His face was cherubic, with a serene smile. The hair on the back of Yuuri’s neck stood up straight; something about the Flügel felt dangerous. 

“My name is Christophe,” the Flügel landed in front of them, wings spread out majestically. “What can I do for the newly crowned King and Queen of Imanity, Viktor and Yuuri?” He was smiling still, but something in his eyes sharpened dangerously. Yuuri tightened his grip on Viktor’s arm, who either didn’t notice the threat, or simply didn’t care. 

Viktor smiled up at Christophe dazzlingly. “So, you know us already, then? That’ll make things easier. I’ll make this quick and simple: hand over this library.”

An amused smile grew on Christophe’s face. “Oh?” he asked, curiously. “Well, it seems we have much to discuss.” 

Yuuri instantly disliked him. For all that he seemed friendly and constantly smiling, Yuuri couldn’t help but have a bad feeling in his gut. His skin prickled, every cell in his body screaming danger. 

“Katsudon,” Yurio whispered, when Christophe’s back was turned to make the group tea. They were sitting in the center of the library, at a table between thousands of bookshelves. Yuuri had honestly never seen so many books in his life, and he didn’t think Yurio had either. “Do you trust this guy?” 

“Not as far as I can throw him,” Yuuri admitted, whispering to him out of the corner of his mouth. “But Viktor knows what he’s doing.”

His soon to be husband- and _what a concept_ , Yuuri thought, Viktor as his _husband-_ had taken to the Flügel quickly. They chatted like old friends, exchanging playful barbs and mild insults. Yuuri decided he wasn’t getting in the middle of _that_ , and had instead taken to wrapping himself around Viktor as possessively and flauntingly as possible.

“That’s a very interesting story, wouldn’t you say,” Christophe mused, sipping his tea as Viktor finished retelling the story of how they ended up in Disboard. “And you want me to give up my library. But you do know what that means, don’t you? You humans would challenge me to a game?”

Viktor nodded, still smiling brightly. “Yes, that’s right.”

Christophe set his tea cup down in his saucer. “You know,” he said, conversationally, “before the Ten Pledges, the Flügel collected severed heads. Now that murder is forbidden, we value knowledge above all else. One could even say that the books containing such knowledge and the places where those books are held are as valuable as life itself.”

“I agree.”

“So if you are saying you wish me to bet my life, what are you expecting to bet in exchange?”

Viktor didn’t let his face betray whatever he was thinking. “Books from another world.” He paused, as Christophe’s movements froze and his eyes widened imperceptibly. Yuuri had to hide the smirk. _Hook, line, and sinker._ “Over forty thousand of them.”

Christophe spit out his tea in shock. “F-forty thousand?!” he repeated, astonished. “You must be bluffing! Where would you even store so many?”

“Inside here,” Viktor explained, holding up the tablet. “Books on philosophy, science, medicine, technology. All from our world.”

“Ah yes, the other world that you mentioned,” Christophe said, frowning now. “That is simply not possible.”

“Why not?” Viktor asked, curiously. 

“Even if something were to be summoned, it would require a tremendous amount of power to keep such a being ‘anchored’ here. That’d be incredibly difficult, even with the powers of the Old Deus.” Christophe looked amused, reaching forward to teasingly brush the pad of his thumb over the back of Viktor’s hand. Viktor didn’t move, instead remaining stony-faced. Yuuri snatched Viktor’s hand away from him with one hand, and grabbed the tablet with the other.

Annoyed, Yuuri held up the tablet and tapped open one of the many books in Japanese. “Enough,” he said, impatiently. “If you want proof, here.” He turned the tablet around.

“You probably won’t be able to understand it,” Viktor said, thoughtfully. “But it should work either way.”

Christophe laughed, eyes flickering between the two of them. He leaned forward, eyes flashing as he reached for the tablet. “I can speak over seven hundred languages,” he said, dismissively. It didn’t necessarily sound like bragging, but it was instead matter-of-fact. “There’s nothing I can’t-“

His eyes skimmed over the characters in the book. Yuuri swiped on the tablet, showing off more pages. Then, he switched out of the e-book and picked another one, this time in Russian.

Christophe let out a strangled noise. Yuuri couldn’t tell if it was excitement or horror, but it sounded mostly like astonishment.

“Not just one, but two languages that I don’t know?” he gasped. “Encyclopedias from another world? Forty thousand of them?!”

“Calm down, now,” Yuuri said, annoyed. He snatched the tablet back from the Flügel. “You’re practically drooling.”

“Apologies,” Christophe calmed down, turning now to look at him. His head cocked to the side, and he smirked. “Okay, then. I am indeed interested in this… thing. But you must understand that it is difficult for me to believe that you two are from another world.”

“You and me both,” Yurio sighed. He had his head cradled on his hand, leaning forward on the table, clearly bored. He had signed up for a game, not a negotiation.

“So how can we prove it?” Yuuri asked, eyes narrowing suspiciously. 

“Easy,” Christophe leaned in closer again, locked on Viktor while smiling slyly. “I do a body check.”

“I’m going to have to veto that,” Yuuri growled, sticking an arm out over Viktor’s chest. “You can check me. Just one of us should be proof enough, right?” 

Christophe pouted. “Oh, Yuuri,” he complained. “Ruining my fun already?”

Yuuri fought the urge to bare his teeth and wrap himself around Viktor.

“Are you sure, _solnyshko_?” Viktor asked, holding his hand.

“Don’t test me, Viktor,” he grumbled, standing up from his spot next to his fiancé. “I’m still mad at you for the whole queen thing.”

Viktor winced, and nodded once, clearly cowed. “Alright, love. Whatever you want.”

Yuuri walked around the table to the curious looking Flügel. His wings spread, drawing Yuuri’s attention. “How do these work?” he asked, curiously.

“You can check me, as well,” Christophe purred. “Our power is synthesized in Spirit Circuits. This collects in our wings.”

Yuuri made a noise of interest, gingerly reaching out to touch the feather-soft wings. “Fascinating,” he murmured, mind already going a mile a minute making calculations and drawing hypotheses about these spirit circuits. Though, it was a fruitless endeavor, he distantly realized. Magic doesn’t follow the known rules of physics or biology, so it’s pointless to try to figure such a thing out.

Which meant _Christophe_ probably didn’t know about physics or biology, then.

His eyes widened.

Yuuri’s train of thought was cut off by Viktor’s sudden and pointed cough. “Well?” he asked. He was still smiling, but there was a sudden coldness to it that surprised Yuuri.

“Sorry,” Yuuri said, blinking and pulling his hand back. “Your wings are amazing.”

Christophe’s cheeks reddened, as if he hadn’t been expecting such a sincere comment. “Oh, thank you,” he said. Then, he looked Yuuri up and down. “Interesting…”

“What is?” Yurio asked, clearly impatient with everything.

“As far as I can tell, there are no spirits within your bodies at all,” Christophe mused. “You two aren’t even defined as “life” in this world. Yet, you’re still constructed just like Imanity.”

“What does that make us?” Viktor asked.

Christophe grinned broadly, practically bouncing with excitement. “It makes you unknown! Which is better than anything! Such is the stuff from which new knowledge is born, after all.”

“So, then that’s enough proof, then?” Yuuri took a step back toward Viktor.

“Yes, please forgive me for assuming you were nothing more than feeble Imanity.” Chris chuckled.

“Hey!” Yurio spat. “This feeble Imanity is going to kick your ass at your own game!”

They all ignored him.

“I accept your challenge,” Christophe said. “But I don’t have something to equal forty thousand books from another world…” 

Yuuri’s eyebrows furrowed. “We told you, we just want- oof!”

Viktor’s elbow collided with Yuuri’s stomach, cutting him off. He shot a glare at his fiancé, but before he could complain, Christophe continued. “… so I guess I’ll just have to offer up everything that I am!”

“Are you serious?” Yurio sputtered in shock.

Yuuri’s mouth fell open, eyes flickering to Viktor’s phone. _Obtain a Flügel_ , Viktor had typed into their to-do list. 

Well, that had been easier than anticipated.

“Is that acceptable?” Christophe asked, so casually that Yuuri wondered if he knew the true consequences of what he was betting.

“Yes,” Viktor agreed.

“Viktor!” Yuuri turned to him, eyes wide. “We can’t own another human- well, sentient being!”

“Why not, Yuuri?” he whined, lips turning into a pout.

“ _So many reasons, Viktor!_ ” Yuuri shouted. Viktor continued to pout, but seemed to agree with Yuuri’s point since he didn’t offer any more opposition.

“How about,” Yuuri said, turning now to face Christophe. “Your complete loyalty. You swear fealty to us, King and Queen of Elchea, and our people.”

Christophe’s face was one of complete surprise. He stared at Yuuri, like he was afraid he was joking, before it morphed into a smile. “Very well,” he agreed. “Though, do you mind if I add a clause that I don’t mind if you come by for tea once in a while when I win? I’d love to know more about you two.”

“That’s fine,” Viktor said. “Then, do you mind us also adding our own clause?

“Sure.” Christophe shrugged. “You’re bound to lose, of course, but feel free to add what you like.”

They took the elevator down to the base of the library.

“We will be playing Materialization Word Chain,” Christophe explained, as they were lowered into the darkened room.

Yurio was looking around in wonder, staring at the shelves upon shelves of books. There was a hungry look in his eyes, one that Yuuri recognized easily, having seen it in his own reflection enough times. He could already tell that Yurio was thinking about how to remodel the library to make the books more easily accessible once it reopened to the public.

They finally came to a stop at the bottom, where a round table glowing blue with a symbol sat, surrounded by two chairs on opposite sides.

“The rules are simple,” Christophe continued. “Words begin how previous ones end. If you fail to answer within thirty seconds, or can’t continue, you lose.”

“Can words be in any language?” Viktor asked.

“Yes, but be careful. Imaginary things that do not exist won’t count as answers. Also, this is _Materialization_ Word Chain. So, if you say something that is present, it will disappear. Otherwise, it will appear. Do you understand? Of course, everything will be reset once the game ends, so don’t worry about actually dying. And you can’t do anything to directly kill the other person- so saying _Viktor’s lungs_ wouldn’t work.”

“We understand,” Yuuri assured him as they took their seats. Yurio stood to the right of Viktor, while Yuuri slid onto Viktor’s lap, as usual.

“We’ll do this together, as always,” Viktor said, glancing at Christophe with a raised eyebrow, daring him to challenge him.

“I don’t mind,” he assured them. “You are feeble humans. It’s only fair to have three against one.”

“Don’t underestimate us, buddy,” Yurio snapped, while Christophe held his hand out in the middle of the table. It emitted a bright blue light, forming a sphere in front of them.

“ _Aschente!_ ”

The room exploded in color, words flashing and circling around them.

“You may have the first word,” Christophe said, leaning back in his chair, comfortably.

Viktor and Yuuri looked at each other.

“My love?” Viktor offered, smiling at him.

Yuuri’s eyes hardened with determination. He held his hand up toward the center of the table. “Okay, for starters, then.” He smirked. “ **Hydrogen bomb**.”

“What?!” All three of them chorused, Viktor in horror and the other two in confusion.

A large bomb appeared several feet above them, moving on its own to engage.

“Huh?” Yurio made a noise of confusion.

“Is that…” Christophe trailed off, eyes widening.

Yuuri turned his head a bit to wink to Viktor. _I’ve got this, just follow my lead_.

Viktor’s face melted into one of understanding. _Of course,_ he seemed to say, with a slight nod. _I trust you._

God, Yuuri loved this man.

The bomb began to glow a bright blue, as Christophe shot up in the air and shouted, “ **Bkuli’ans**!”

There was an earth-shattering explosion, but Yuuri hardly blinked. He looked up at the Flügel floating above them, who was looking down at them with a blank expression.

“Self-destructing on the first move?” Christophe asked, floating back into his seat. “If not for my benevolence, the game would have ended here.”

“In a tie,” Yuuri said, cheerfully. “That would’ve killed the both of us, and you know it. It was worth a try.” Christophe didn’t confirm nor deny this, merely raising an eyebrow at them.

“Besides,” Yuuri added. “I figured you wouldn’t let the game end in a single move. It was obvious that you would find it too boring, and would want to continue.”

“I see.” Christophe crossed his legs, leaning against the back of his chair again. “I’m glad you won’t bore me then. It’s your turn, Yuuri.” 

“It’s our turn,” Yuuri corrected. “We’re a team, don’t you forget it. **Spirit circuits**.”

Christophe’s wings glowed before dying down. “I see, you’ve surprised me yet again.” He didn’t sound too concerned.

“Well, I just learned the word,” Yuuri chuckled. “It doesn’t affect you much, though, does it?”

“No,” Christophe shook his head. “It limits my physical abilities somewhat and prevents me from flying, but like I said, it doesn’t affect what’s inside me. So it’s no problem.” He sounded delighted.

“He’s really starting to enjoy this,” Viktor murmured, his mouth next to Yuuri’s ear. Then, he craned a neck to look Yuuri in the eyes, and said, “ _You’re_ really starting to enjoy this.”

“Hey, Flügel, it’s your turn now,” Yurio interrupted impatiently. “Let’s get this going!”

“An easy one: **Stallion**!”

As expected, a large, brown horse appeared next to the table.

“ **Necklace**.”

The back and forth continued for a few more rounds, until Christophe’s face brightened. “How about a change of scenery, hm? **Beach**!”

Instantly, the wasteland was transformed until they were sitting on a yellow sand beach, beautiful blue waves crashing near them.

“Ugh, too much sun,” Yuuri complained, shielding his eyes from the sunlight. “ **Hat**.” A straw sunhat appeared on his head, blocking out the sun from his face. He sighed. “Better.”

“ **Trainers** ,” Christophe said, causing all of their shoes to disappear.

Yuuri grimaced and pulled his knees up, so as to avoid touching the hot sand.

The game lasted several hours, each side going back and forth naming new words, with Yurio and Viktor chiming in once in a while. Yuuri could feel Yurio’s growing impatience, but was glad he had not yet dared to ask Yuuri what his angle was here. He wondered if Viktor had grasped his plan yet, then shook his head dismissively; of course Viktor knew what Yuuri was doing. It was silly to think for a moment that they weren’t completely in sync.

“This has been fun,” Christophe said, many hours and several words later. He seemed to mean it, too.

“So this is what katsudon is.” Yurio moaned in delight, happily chowing down on his meal. He had taken to eating with chopsticks surprisingly well, if only to show how hungry he was.

“ _Vkusno!_ ” Viktor agreed, enthusiastically.

“Say,” Yuuri wondered aloud, lowering his bowl a bit, “Chris, do you get hungry? **Mantle**.”

Christophe blinked, taken aback either by the nickname, by the question, or by the unfamiliar word. “No, unlike you feeble Imanity, the Flügel have no need to eat.” He held up a hand. “ **Elooshiga’c**.”

A huge, moth like creature appeared.

“Sure, but you get sleepy, right?” Yuuri asked, curious. “ **Crust**.” 

“If you’re tired, Yuuri, feel free to concede,” Christophe shrugged, uncaring. “It must be getting late for you weak humans, after all. I’ve already had my fun with you, so I won’t mind. **Time clock**.”

Yuuri's eyes narrowed. “You keep calling us feeble, saying we’re mere humans. I understand, of course, to a Sixth Order like you, we humans look like ants to you. But who says ants aren’t strong? **Kilt**.” 

His pants suddenly transformed into a long, plaid kilt. Viktor stiffened a bit, letting out a low whistle before wrapping an arm around his waist in silent approval. Yuuri nudged him in annoyance.

Christophe chuckled. “Apologies. I never thought you Imanity would consider yourselves anything _but_ weak. Surely even ants understand they are so small compared to the rest of the world, so simple.”

Yuuri’s lips spread into a smile. _Here comes the endgame._ “If you think strength and a long life span equals power, then you’re the simple one.”

“You think yourself above me?” Christophe asked, clearly humored. “You humans are so curious, aren’t you? Don’t forget that I could end this game anytime I like. **Torch**.”

Yuuri laughed. “Sure,” he agreed, “but you won’t. It’s what makes you so arrogant, so _egocentric._ **House**.”

“Egocentric?” Christophe repeated, confused by the strange foreign word.

“Yes,” Yuuri scribbled out the word in English, holding it up to Christophe for long enough that he could see the letters. “Egocentric. It’s a word in another language, English. It means self-centered, with no regard for others.”

“How am I egocentric? **Hazel**.” Christophe’s eyes were narrowed, focused completely on Yuuri now. 

“You’re curious about the unknown,” Yuuri explained, simply. “But you’re far too arrogant to ever respect it. Not really. All that matters to you is how the unknown might benefit you, how it might interest you. But you’ve never been able to wrap your mind around the fact that that unknown has its own thoughts, feelings, and agenda.”

He slid the slip of paper into his pocket, and slid off of Viktor’s lap. He pouted at the loss of Yuuri’s warmth, but followed him to stand up. Yurio eyed them from where he had taken a seat on the ground.

“It’s about time we taught you a lesson,” Yuuri finally said, looking down at a scowling Chris. “And show you how weak you truly are.”

He reached for Viktor’s hand, bringing it up to his lip to place a kiss on his ring. Viktor’s eyes followed his movements, watching him adoringly. “Trust me?” he asked, softly, though he already knew the answer. His internal clock ticked down.

“Always,” Viktor murmured. Yuuri offered him a small smile, before turning to look at Yurio.

“Thanks for your help so far, Yurio, giving me a break throughout this game. So sorry, but you might die for a little while. Tough it out, okay?”

Yurio’s mouth opened in confusion. “What-“

Yuuri and Viktor broke out into a dead sprint, climbing up the tower as fast as possible and leaping up into the air as Yuuri yelled, “ **Lithosphere**!”

“Huh?!”

The ground beneath them disappeared, causing everything to begin falling toward the core of the Earth.

Viktor was laughing, holding onto Yuuri tightly. “My genius love,” he purred, while Yuuri preened under the praise.

Chris didn’t have any knowledge of the anatomy of a planet, so he hadn’t understood erasing the mantle and the crust. With the surface of the planet now gone, they were all plummeting, with Chris far below them and unable to use his wings.

 _Yes,_ Yuuri thought, heart-pounding, _egocentric indeed_.

“ **Eos lumo**!” Chris shouted, back to the core, staring up at them with determination.

Viktor looked at him, and Yuuri nodded. Together, as always. 

They both took a huge gulp of air. “ **Oxygen**!”

“ **Nets** ,” Chris called, looking unconcerned still.

 _Shit_ , Yuuri panicked. He forced himself to calm down and focus on Viktor, who was looking at him with the utmost faith in his eyes.

He used a bit of his leftover breath to exhale out, “ **Supernova**.” 

_Come on,_ Yuuri thought, furiously, _take the bait!_

“You’re making this easier than I thought,” Chris laughed. “ **Air**!” 

Then, he watched as the smile faded and Chris gasped for breath, clutching his throat and choking.

Yuuri grinned. Of course, this world didn’t understand atomic theory. He had removed the oxygen, but air didn’t only consist of oxygen. Chris had made the oxygen return, but everything else that the body needed to breathe was gone. Oxygen, at such elevated pressures, couldn’t be absorbed and was toxic.

It had been a risk, of course, given their lack of knowledge of Flügel anatomy and physiology. Christophe had said that they were mostly the same shape as humans, just modified and enhanced by spirit circuits. Still, Yuuri had to go off the assumption that the same things that could kill a human would be able to kill a Flügel as well.

Yuuri reached for Viktor, cradling his face in his hands. _I love you_ , he thought, as hard as possible, like Viktor could read his mind. A smile grew on his face, and Yuuri knew that the message had been received. His fiancé pulled him into a kiss, and Yuuri felt the burning in his lungs alleviate slightly. Then, they pulled apart to look back down at a stunned Chris. 

With the last of their breath, Viktor and Yuuri gasped out, “ **Real atmosphere**.”

Viktor wrapped himself around Yuuri tightly. Yuuri could feel his lungs burning and his body trembling as he held onto Viktor as well. Without the atmosphere, the zero-pressure environment would cause the air inside their bodies to expand and burst like a balloon.

Christophe was shaking, uncomprehendingly trying to open his mouth and speak. A look of shock passed over his face when nothing came out.

 _Tick tock, Christophe,_ Yuuri thought, triumphantly. _Sound doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and if you can’t respond within thirty seconds…_

Then, a smirk appeared on Christophe’s face. He lifted a finger, glowing in the dark. He began to write in the air, pushing the characters midair as they floated in the direction of them. Christophe was smirking, looking like the cat that caught the canary, as the word “ **egocentric** ” faded away.

Yuuri reached into his pocket, pulling out the slip of paper and holding it up so that the fading “egocentric” in Yuuri’s handwriting was facing Christophe. Then, he flipped it around, revealing his trump card. 

**Coulomb’s force**.

Christophe’s eyes widened, unable to understand. If Yuuri could have laughed, he would have. Then, he closed his eyes and buried his head into Viktor’s chest. Without Coulomb’s force, all there was left was the nuclear force, quickly drawing atoms together and creating a hypernova, destroying everything. The sheer force of the event was rivaled only by the big bang itself. 

For all of Christophe’s showboating and clever words and magical tricks, the game had been won since the first round.

The next thing Yuuri knew, they were sitting in the library again. 

“You assholes!” Yurio roared, furious. “You used me as a decoy! You let me die!”

“You weren’t really going to die,” Viktor said, laughing a bit. “Have a little faith, Yurio.”

“If it weren’t for your help, we would’ve died,” Yuuri added. “Thanks for your help, _Storge_.”

Yurio looked away, face red. “Hmph,” he grumbled. “Next time, maybe let me in on your little plans.”

Yuuri laughed. “Will do.”

Christophe floated down to them. “I was utterly defeated,” he said, sounding resigned. “You couldn’t have known I would have used ‘egocentric.’”

“Perhaps,” Yuuri said, letting go of Viktor to step forward, closer to the Flügel. “Or, maybe I just took a calculated risk knowing your arrogance would do the hard work for me.” 

Christophe grinned. “You must be insane.”

“We must,” Yuuri agreed, “since we’re trying to challenge the gods of this world.”

Christophe’s eyes widened. “What?”

“It was the Triplets, Axel, Lutz, and Loop, who brought us to this world,” Viktor said, slinging an arm around Yuuri’s shoulder. “We have no choice but to beat him, don’t we?” 

“So, Christophe, in accordance with the pledges, you have sworn your undying loyalty to us and the rest of Imanity,” Yuuri shot him a grin. “Oh, and the books on our tablet were just bait. Read them all you want, and you can use the library if you’d like, assuming you haven’t already read everything in here as is.”

Christophe was gaping, then he was smiling. “I, Christophe of the Flügel, Exceed Order No. 6, and member of the Council of 18 Wings, I pledge my fealty to you, Viktor and Yuuri of Imanity.” 

“Good to have you on the team, Christophe!” Viktor beamed, holding his hand out to the Flügel. 

He looked surprised, but he took it. “Call me Chris. I’m looking forward to it,” he said.


	6. Chapter 6 - Viktor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Viktor's not super great at people. Luckily, Yurio decides to trust him anyways.

**Library of Elchea, The Kingdom of Elchea**

They returned to the library the next day to begin their research into the Eastern Federation. Chris had been instructed to show Yurio the kitchens, which were stocked with an almost never ending, non-perishable supply of ingredients.

“Now you can make as many pirozhkis as you’d like!” Viktor had declared, beaming. “No need to cut any corners, either. You can follow your grandpa’s recipes perfectly now!”

Yurio had looked incredibly touched, even if he’d immediately shut down his expressions and muttered quick, “Whatever. Cool, I guess,” before rushing to collect the ingredients.

“He loves it, I think,” Yuuri laughed, squeezing Viktor’s hand as they gathered several books to begin reading. Viktor, personally, agreed.

The library was incredibly old and dusty. It wasn’t in disrepair, but it was clear that certain aspects hadn’t been maintained thanks to Chris.

“We’ll have to clean everything, give it a full remodeling before we open it up to the public,” Viktor mused. “Some places don’t seem very safe,” he added, eyeing the rotten, wooden ladders.

“Agreed,” Yuuri said, plopping into the chair at one of the long tables. “We’ll have Yurio find us carpenters who can get the job done.”

They began to make plans, pointing out the carpeting that should be changed and the drapes that needed replacing. The stained glass windows, at least, were all intact, resulting in colorful rays of sunlight that shone through the library. Yuuri had been most concerned with the elevator, which was not only incredibly old and rusty, given Chris’s ability to fly, but also out of date by their world’s standards.

“We should see if we could implement a glass elevator here,” Yuuri suggested. “That’d be really cool.”

Viktor nodded in agreement, typing furiously on his list. “Speaking of which,” he said, “We’ll need to implement mandatory schooling for all citizens of Elchea below the age of 18.”

Yurio dropped the plate of pirozhkis on the table. “What?!” he demanded. “Why?”

Yuuri blinked at him, taking a pirozhki and biting into it. “Education is important,” he said. “You can’t improve and innovate if your people don’t have the knowledge to do so. But to do that, we’ll first need to start creating more jobs in industry and trade, rather than agriculture. Hopefully this is alleviated by the crop rotations we’ve introduced and new irrigation systems we’ve implemented, since it will require less laborers and force people to find jobs in the city rather than in the farms.”

Yurio was staring, again. “Which… would lead to leisure time,” he realized slowly. “They won’t need to have their kids working all the time, giving them the ability to go to school, and escape the cycle of poverty.” 

“Bingo,” Yuuri nodded, smiling at him proudly.

“Not to mention,” Viktor added, cheerfully, “it’ll give adults more time to go to the library. Even if they don’t have proper schooling, they’ll have access to all this knowledge now. Your entire country’s history has been released back to its people.” 

“That’s a problem for tomorrow, though,” Yuuri said, leaning back in his chair. “Chris, why don’t you tell us more about the Warbeasts?”

Chris nodded, taking his seat across them at the table. “Well, differences between Warbeast clans had kept them in a constant civil war since the implementation of the Ten Pledges. It was only in the last few decades that the Shrine Priestess ended the war and united the clans to form the third largest country in the world: the Eastern Federation.”

“In order to conquer them,” Viktor mused, “we’ll need all the information you have on them, Chris. Everything you’ve accumulated on them in the past millennium!”

Chris grimaced. “My apologies,” he said, reluctantly, “but that’s not possible. Not even you three could defeat the Eastern Federation.”

This caught their attention, resulting in a stunned silence.

“Oy, what did I tell you about doubting us?” Yurio demanded.

“I’m only telling the truth!” Chris defended himself. 

Viktor’s eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

Chris sighed. “The Elves challenged them four times since the Great War, and lost every time. I challenged them myself once, and lost.

“What kind of game did you play?” Yuuri asked.

“That’s part of their bet,” Chris explained, scowling. “The loser has their memories of the game erased. No one knows.”

Viktor let out a breath. “I see…” he murmured. “That’s why it’s impossible to win.”

Yurio frowned. “What do you mean?” he demanded. 

“If your memories are erased, and there are no records of what happened in the game, then you can’t form a counter strategy. If they can actually read minds, how can you expect to beat them?” Viktor sighed. “We told you, knowledge is the key in winning.”

Suddenly, Yuuri straightened in his seat. “Wait,” he said, eyebrows furrowing. “That… doesn’t add up.” 

“What doesn’t?”

“Well, if it was such a lost cause, then people would just stop challenging them, wouldn’t they?” Yuuri looked at them. “If they had a sure-fire way of beating the Flügel and the Elves, then why not make themselves appear vulnerable and wait for others to challenge them? No, this mind wipe must be a _defensive_ strategy, because they know they _can_ be beat. Winning against the elves four times made the rest of the races give them a wide enough berth, which is what they wanted in the first place.”

Chris looked pensieve at this. “That part’s true enough, at least,” he agreed. “Only one country has challenged the Eastern Federation in the past decade. _Eight times_.”

Viktor made a face. “What idiotic country would do that?” he asked, baffled.

There was a long, awkward silence. 

Yurio’s head connected with the table. “Um,” he muttered. “That would be us. Elchea was their only challenger.”

Viktor took a deep breath. “Eight times?” he repeated, for confirmation. Chris snickered, and nodded, while Yuuri grimaced. Yurio looked pained.

“Grandpa lost almost half our territory,” he explained, grimly. He pulled out a map from one of the books, gently unfolding the fading parchment. He pointed out several pieces of territory not a part of Elchea.

“I didn’t think the old king was that much of an idiot,” Viktor muttered.

Yurio growled. “Watch it!” he snapped. “You said yourself he was right!”

“Half the territory,” Viktor repeated, scowling. “Do you know how much industry and dairy farming we could do if we still had that land? What, did he think luck would eventually be on his side?”

“My grandfather wasn’t good at games, but he wasn’t stupid! He wasn’t crazy enough that he thought nothing of the people he was in charge of. He was a good and practical man, which is more than I can say about you two!” Yurio spat, blinking furiously.

“Practical?” Viktor laughed, hollowly. “Sure, if you consider losing half your territory could be considered practical. I’m almost amazed he was your king, but given that the rest of Imanity seems content with their dismal circumstances and don’t do anything to try to rectify it themselves.”

“Viktor,” Yuuri said, cautiously, but Viktor ignored him.

“They just complain about their circumstances, so maybe your grandpa was a good king,” he said, ironically. “Humans are all hopeless, every single one of them.”

“ _Viktor!_ ” Yuuri snapped, sharply. Viktor blinked, looking up at him. His fiancé was frowning at him in disappointment. Then, he looked at Yurio.

Oh no.

“Don’t talk about my grandpa that way,” Yurio said, fists clenched and voice trembling. “I don’t give a damn what you say about me, or the rest of Imanity, but…” he choked, then shut his mouth before turning on his heels and storming out.

“Yurio…”

“Don’t, Viktor,” Yuuri said, shaking his head. “Leave him alone. I think you’ve done enough.” 

Viktor crossed his arms over his chest defensively. “Well, how else am I supposed to react? Half their territory, Yuuri.”

“I know,” Yuuri said with a sigh. “But as good as you are at making speeches and appealing to people’s feelings, you really don’t know how to navigate them at all, do you?”

“Maybe not as well as you,” Viktor admitted, grudgingly. Yuuri held out a pirozhki for him to bite into. “Thanks. Let’s keep doing some research; I’ll apologize to Yurio later.”

They spent the rest of the day in the library. Wherever Yurio ended up going, he hadn’t returned. It was just Yuuri and Viktor left in the library, along with Chris, who had been floating in and out of the library all day now. 

“You should sleep,” Viktor murmured, pulling his cloak off the back of his chair and placing it over Yuuri, who was lying on his stomach on the floor glancing through another book. He had bags under his eyes, and he was constantly drifting off for the past hour now.

“I’m fine…” Yuuri replied with a yawn.

“Yuuri,” Viktor said, pointedly. 

“Just… a quick nap…” Yuuri mumbled, then let his head fall onto his arms and his eyes close.

Viktor smiled fondly, leaning down to kiss his forehead. He stood up and began to gather the books that were strewn everywhere on the floor.

“I don’t know why you bother to keep looking,” Chris said, quietly. “I doubt you’ll find anything that will justify the king’s foolish actions.”

“That’s not what I’m doing,” Viktor said without looking up. “Something Yuuri said earlier. I realized, something felt off. Why did the former king challenge them eight times? A practical man, in charge of three million Imanity wouldn’t just rush into defeat, over and over again.” 

“He was known as the foolish king, Viktor,” Chris reminded. “There’s no telling what he was thinking.”

“Hm, not as foolish as he led others to believe,” Viktor said, then his eyes widened. He straightened suddenly, reaching for the map. “This is the first place he gambled…” 

“Just an armamite mine, right?” Chris asked, peeking over the map to see where Viktor was pointing at.

“Yes. It’s a valuable metal, but this country’s technology hasn’t been developed enough to manufacture it, so it’s useless. Then he bet here, then here, and here…” Viktor pointed at different pieces of territory, all lost one after the other. “Up until the last time, when he bet Elchea’s castle, the king didn’t gamble any piece of valuable territory.” 

“And?”

“And,” Viktor emphasized, “there must have been some reason. Why would the Eastern Federation wipe players’ memories? It would only serve as a disincentive. Why would Elven Garde challenge them only four times? Why did the former king challenge them eight times, if-“ 

Then, something clicked.

“Viktor?” Chris asked, curiously, when Viktor suddenly stopped short. 

“Unless, by the eighth time, he had achieved his goal,” Viktor whispered, eyes wide.

Chris looked at him, baffled. “What?”

Viktor shot up, pulling several books off the stacks and scrolling through them on the desk. “There’s no proof, but it would make sense! What if the former king didn’t lose his memories?”

Chris sighed a bit. “Viktor, I say this with as much respect as possible. But not all Imanity act with the same depth as you and Yuuri. You two are clearly cut from a different kind of cloth.”

“No, not all of them,” Viktor agreed, “but some do. And in this world, maybe they were just misunderstood.” He looked up to see Chris’s doubtful expression, and he chuckled. “I know, I know. You must be wondering how I could still believe in humanity, despite their stupidity. The answer is simple: I don’t. They’re stupid, they’re sheep-like. All of them, myself included. In a way, that hasn’t changed, between our old world, and this one.”

“Viktor…” he sounded confused.

“But,” Viktor said, standing now, “what I do believe in, is the potential of humanity. And the proof is in people like Yuuri.”

He turned his gaze to his fiancé, still fast asleep on the ground, curled under Viktor’s blanket. He sighed adoringly. “Yuuri saved my life, you know,” he said, voice much softer now. “The only reason I’m strong enough today, is because he’s right by my side. I met him when we were just kids, at an international chess match. My home country touted me as their prized chess master, only fifteen years old and a genius. I met this small, eleven year old boy from Japan, nicknamed Japan’s Ace, and he looked right at me. Right in my eyes. And he said…”

_“You look so empty.”_

“Harsh,” Chris said, with a light-hearted laugh.

Viktor smiled back. “Perhaps,” he admitted. “But it made me realize how much of my life up until that point I spent living for others. That’s why I felt so empty, because I wasn’t living for myself. I never was. And then he kicked my ass in chess.”

“And now you’re… married,” Chris said, incredulous.

Viktor laughed. “Engaged. And there was a lot of stuff between that,” he admitted. “A lot of time and a lot of growing. But it was thanks to him, that we got this far.” He tilted his head back, gazing at the illusion of the galaxy and stars above their head. “You know, in my world, we’ve managed space travel. Humans have landed on the moon, and we’ve sent machines into the stars.”

Chris let out a breath of surprise. “That sounds impossible.”

“Of course it did to humanity too,” Viktor agreed. “Until someone pulled it off. Someone like Yuuri, someone with the potential to do great things. That’s why we need to believe that maybe, maybe that foolish king isn’t as foolish as everyone thought. Maybe he had that same potential, but he had been dealt a bad hand. And I think his potential was passed down to Yurio, too.”

Chris smiled, placing a hand gently on his shoulder. “You know,” he said, quietly, “I’m not really as mad as I thought I would be about this situation.”

Viktor winked. “You were mad?”

Chris laughed. “No,” he admitted, “but I thought I would have been.”

With that, he turned his attention to Viktor and Yuuri’s tablet, picking up where he left off on one of Yuuri’s old economics textbooks. 

A few moments of silence passed when Viktor heard footsteps behind them. Yurio approached them, eyes rimmed red.

“I want to give you something,” Yurio said, before Viktor could say anything. 

“Yurio-“ he began, averting his eyes.

“No, don’t,” Yurio shook his head. “I know. I heard. Here, I need to show you something.”

*** 

“Please tell me we’re not looking for an old man’s porn stash,” Yuuri groaned.

“I regret everything,” Yurio muttered, face in his hands.

“Well, the royal chambers would be a good place to start looking then!” Chris grinned. 

“Actually,” Viktor said, holding up the golden key that Yurio had given him the other night. “We already found it.”

“What?!” Yurio’s head snapped up, looking at them in shock.

“The first night we tried to sleep here. The bed was lopsided, so we started fiddling around and…”

Viktor and Yuuri showed them the series of knobs and puzzles that eventually opened a secret room in the bookcase. The key, as expected, fit right into the lock of the door to a secret library.

“This is amazing,” Yuuri murmured, reaching for the lone, open book on the desk.

 _“I leave this in hope that you will not be Imanity’s last king, but rather the one who restores it. I am not a wise king. In fact, I expect I will be remembered as one of the most foolish. But I take up my pen for the king who will restore our glory. I hope that my meager struggles will be of aid to you, our next king_.”

Yurio was wiping his eyes as Yuuri read the open journal page aloud. 

“I knew it,” Viktor said, looking around in excitement and wonder. “The old king didn’t lose his memories. Unlike the Elves, the Warbeasts saw Imanity as easy prey. They knew they could keep beating your grandfather, with or without his memories wiped. So they let him keep his memories, hoping he would keep challenging them and losing.”

“They were trying to lure him in?” Yurio asked, anger seeping into his voice.

“They probably went easy on him,” Yuuri said. “To make him think he could beat them the next time, and make him gamble more land. But the king knew that, and he challenged them anyway, because he needed to learn how the game worked. He deliberately gave them useless land that he knew we would take back one day.”

“Why would he tell anyone the secret of the game, then?” Chris asked, frowning. “It could’ve saved us all a lot of trouble and research.”

“They probably made him pledge to never tell anyone as long as he lived,” Viktor said. “But it doesn’t apply, now that he’s dead.”

Yurio’s eyes widened, and he looked up at Viktor hopefully. “Then, that means… He bet eight times, found a loophole, and entrusted that knowledge to the next king. The best gambler.”

“Which is why he had the next ruler be chosen by a gambling tournament,” Yuuri agreed, smiling. “He made a bet, that Imanity would rise and crush the other races.”

Viktor picked up the journal and held it out to Yurio. “Your grandfather played the fool, challenging them and knowing he had no hope of winning, devoting himself to finding out the enemy’s weaknesses. He gave you that key, Yurio. This is his trust in humanity.”

Yurio’s eyes welled with tears, hugging the book tightly to his chest. “Grandpa…” he whispered.

Yuuri wrapped an arm around the teenager. “That’s one hell of a task we’ve been given.”

“I think we’ve got this,” Viktor said, with a small smile. “See, Chris? There are other humans like us. Pretty great, isn’t it?”

Chris’s face went from one of surprise to amusement. “Yes,” he said softly. “There really is.”


	7. Chapter 7 - Yurio

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yurio, Viktor, Yuuri, and Chris visit the Elchean Embassy of the Eastern Federation.

“Jeez, so this is it?” Yurio asked, looking up at the tall building. It was easily the tallest building he had ever seen; the Elchean Embassy of the Eastern Federation was certainly a sight for sore eyes, seen even as far away as the Elchean Library.

“One would think they’re trying to compensate for something,” Chris laughed, as they walked toward the entrance of the building. 

“Can you explain what we’re doing here now?” Yurio complained. “You dragged us all here and now we’re trespassing on foreign soil? Not that I care about that bullshit, but we could get into some serious trouble.”

“I made an appointment,” Viktor said, cheerfully, waving a hand. “Isn’t that right?” Yuuri was walking with him, hand in hand as usual. 

They stopped a few feet from the entrance, where a Warbeast greeted them. He looked like a young man, with brown hair, and a matching beard and fox ears. He was smiling mysteriously.

“Welcome, Lords Viktor and Yuuri and Elchea,” he said. “I am Emil Nekola, assistant ambassador to the Federation’s Elchean Embassy. Pleased to meet you.” He bowed his head slightly. 

“When did you…?” Yurio trailed off in disbelief.

“This morning,” Viktor explained. “He was watching me when I was in the library, so I gestured to say we’d come over. Your senses are as amazing as they are infamous.” 

Emil nodded. “So you have come to see the ambassador, Michele Crispino, haven’t you?”

Yurio’s eyes widened. _So it’s true then. They’re mind readers_. 

Viktor didn’t seem too bothered by the Warbeast’s clairvoyance.

“Glad we’re on the same page, then,” Viktor said, cheerfully. “If it’s not too much trouble, we’d really appreciate a meeting with him.” 

“Very well,” Emil said, after a moment of contemplation. “Please, follow me.”

“I can’t get a read on this guy,” Chris murmured.

“How did Viktor see him from all the way over there?” Yurio muttered back, glancing at the grand library in the distance. The embassy was nearly a two-hour carriage ride outside of the city, after all.

 _Has the game already begun_? he wondered.

They were led into the lobby of the building, gazing at the beautifully decorated embassy. Its walls were a bright red shade and the lights were golden and warm. There was a large screen in the center of the library, with moving pictures.

“Hey, Chris,” Yuuri asked, suddenly. “Do you recognize that?” He pointed at the screen.

Chris shook his head, eyebrows furrowed. “Some sort of image display device?” he guessed. “But… the Warbeasts can’t use magic, so…” His eyes narrowed, trying to figure out what exactly it was. He looked at their tour guide for a moment, as if he was about to demand an explanation as to how the screen worked. 

“I’ll tell you about it later,” Yuuri murmured, earning a surprised look and an excited nod from the Flügel.

They stepped into an elevator. It was clear that it wasn’t meant for more than a few people at a time, so they all had to crowd in. Yuuri had his back pressed up against Viktor’s chest to try to make more room, while Chris floated toward the ceiling of the elevator. Yurio growled, shifting his weight uncomfortably.

The elevator started moving up, causing Yurio to yelp in surprise. “The floor is moving?” He had been amazed by most of the technology that they had encountered since entering the embassy, but this was something else.

“It’s an elevator,” Viktor explained. “What we were talking about implementing in the library.”

“Wow,” Yurio muttered. He cast Yuuri a look, thinking, _you have these everywhere in your world?_ Yuuri merely offered a small smile back, looking a little amused.

“Lord Viktor, may I ask that you please follow proper procedure when making an appointment next time?” Emil spoke up. “Some Warbeasts have come to harbor extreme animosity toward Elchea since that last incident. I wasn’t able to properly prepare them for your arrival, so some may not be entirely civil.”

Surprisingly enough, it was Chris who cut in. He was hanging upside down, mid-air, smiling innocently at Emil. “So, a dog that talks and walks on two legs is still a dog, then?”

Yuuri’s eyebrows shot up. Viktor tilted his head a bit to catch Yurio’s eye.

“What incident is he talking about?” Viktor asked Yurio, lowering his voice.

He grimaced. “The Construction Wars. Having a foreign embassy bigger than our palace was bad for our image, so we built a new one.”

“That’s the one we live in now?”

“Sort of. After that, the Eastern Federation continued to add on to their embassy, as if to spite us. And it just… kept going.”

“I see,” Viktor said, in realization. “So, it was pettiness.”

Yurio grumbled at that, but he really couldn’t argue with that. “Elchea is far behind the Eastern Federation in construction technology and-“

“That aside,” Chris cut in again, “the idea of the 14th ranked Warbeasts looking down on the lowest ranked Imanity is like a maniac laughing at a fool.”

Yurio sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose while Emil forced out a polite laugh.

“So harsh coming from someone of the Sixth Order, God-killer. But tell me something.” He smiled with no teeth. “What does that make you? A defective weapon that would choose to work with hairless monkeys?”

They traded a few more barbs, smiling threateningly and promising death with their eyes. 

“So, relations in this world are still pretty strained,” Yuuri noted, muttering under his breath.

“The war dragged on forever,” Yurio whispered back, “and a lot of the races have long enough life spans that they were there during the war, like Chris. Or at least only a couple generations away… Even though the Ten Pledges suddenly forbade all violence, the grudges still remain.”

They finally exited the tight elevator space, glad to be away from the hollow laughter of both Emil and Chris.

“Please wait here,” Emil requested, leaving as they entered the meeting room. There was a long, dark oak table with several chairs lined up on either side. Golden paper lanterns hung from the ceiling, lighting the room in a warm ambiance. On the other end of the table was a bright screen, currently displaying a map of Disboard.

Once Emil was out of earshot, Chris turned to Viktor with a curious expression.

“So, how _did_ you contact the Warbeasts?”

Viktor glanced around them to make sure they weren’t being watched, then held up his phone for them to see. He held a finger to his lips and winked.

Yurio and Chris leaned in to see the small screen. It was a shaky, blurry video of Emil, clearly taken from the window of the library. Emil was indeed standing on the balcony of the tallest floor of the embassy, looking right at the camera.

“Oh,” Yurio murmured, “so you couldn’t actually see him, but you guessed that he saw you, so you gestured. Which means you bluffed someone who can read minds?”

Viktor opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted by the sound of footsteps. He quickly slid the phone back into his pocket and turned.

“This is the Eastern Federation’s ambassador to Elchea, Michele Crispino.”

Emil and another young man entered the meeting hall. Michele appeared a little younger than Emil, and lacked the facial hair that the other Warbeast had. He had tanned skin, auburn hair, and most interestingly, purple eyes. His fox-like ears, which almost blended into his hair, straightened and his long, bushy tail flickered once, as he took them in.

“So, you are the hairless monkeys that Emil was telling me about,” he said, eyes passing over each of them.

“You can quit it with the hairless monkeys thing,” Yurio snapped. He felt Yuuri’s hand on his shoulder, glancing back up at him. Yuuri gave him a pointed look, and he fell silent, scowling.

“I’m Viktor, this is my fiancé Yuuri,” Viktor said, stepping forward. On the word “fiancé,” he turned to give Yuuri a dopey smile, earning an eye roll in return. Yurio gagged internally.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Yuuri said, smiling politely.

Michele nodded once. “Very well, let’s get started on why you called this meeting.”

They sat across from one another at the center of the long table. Yuuri and Viktor sat in the middle, flanked by Chris on Viktor’s side and Yurio on Yuuri’s.

“If you can read our thoughts, there’s no need to ask, is there?” Viktor goaded.

“This is a place of diplomacy,” Emil countered, “for exchanging words and letters. Is that too complicated for you?”

“Very well, then, I’ll tell you what I want.” Viktor leaned back in his chair, crossing his legs and offering the most charming smile he had in his arsenal. He leaned his head against his hand, elbow supported by the armrest of the cushioned chair. “Play a game for Michele, and I’ll bet Yuuri.”

Silence.

“What?” Yurio blurted out. Chris was also staring now, mouth agape.

Yurio watched as Yuuri’s head snapped over to look at Viktor, eyebrows raised. Viktor didn’t look back- probably out of fear of crumbling in the face of Yuuri’s indignation. Yurio scoffed, but, when Yuuri merely rolled his eyes, turned his attention back to the Warbeasts.

Emil’s friendly smile was wiped from his face. Instead, it was contorted with rage. He shot up out of his seat, slamming his hands on the table in front of them. “If you want me to kick you right out the window and let you fall thirteen stories, you should’ve just said so!” he snarled.

Michele, on the other hand, didn’t seem phased. He watched them with a straight face, before placing a hand on Emil’s shoulder. Instantly, the other Warbeast calmed, taking his seat again with a scowl. 

_Is he trying to… goad them?_ Yurio wondered, confused. _Emil seems awfully protective; surely even Viktor can see that._

“If you won’t tell us what you really want, then leave right now,” Michele said, his voice calm and collected.

“Why don’t you drop the pathetic act?” Yuuri said, coldly.

This caught their attention. Both Michele and Emil looked at him, as if seeing him for the first time.

“If you can really read thoughts, then let’s bet what my fiancé proposed.” Yuuri said, simply. Viktor, at his side, was smirking. “You’d be able to see whether or not I’m bluffing when I say this: we’ve learned the tricks of your games, and you can agree to this game that Viktor proposed for the chance to wipe our memories.”

Emil’s face tightened, his shoulders drawing up suddenly. Michele remained stoic, but Yurio could see his jaw tightening. There was a long moment, where the two parties sat and stared at each other in a silent staring match. Finally, Yuuri smiled.

“We were right,” Yuuri said. “You don’t need the amazing senses of a Warbeast to draw conclusions. Just a bit of body language knowledge and basic observational skills.”

“Coincidentally, it’s a specialty of ours,” Viktor finished, standing and leaning over the table with a cocky grin. 

Emil looked them up and down with narrowed eyes. There was another long moment of silence, before Viktor added, with a sly glint in his eyes, “Are you done confirming that this isn’t a bluff?”

Emil’s eyes widened.

Viktor laughed, and held out a hand for Yuuri to take. They began to walk toward the screens. “Well, now that we’ve established this whole mind-reading stuff is crap, here’s the long-awaited real reason that we’re here.”

They stopped before the huge map of Disboard. “We, Viktor and Yuuri, designated representatives of the Sixteenth Order of Imanity and the Kingdom of Elchea…” 

“Have decided to bless the Eastern Federation with being the first martyrs on our path to world domination,” Yuuri continued. “We challenge you to a game between nations.”

“And we demand everything the Eastern Federation has on this continent,” Viktor finished, slamming his hand on the screen on top of the Eastern Federation.

Another long silence.

Yurio felt like screaming. Even Chris was watching them with wide eyes. Neither of them had expected today to end like this.

“Oh,” Viktor added, thoughtfully, as he stalked back to the table. “And we’re not changing _our_ bets, it’s still for Yuuri. You should’ve just bet Mickey, but oh well. Sorry.”

“Check,” Yuuri agreed, smiling.

“Um, Viktor, Yuuri…” Chris let out a nervous laugh. “What are you two doing?”

Yuuri stepped in line with his fiancé. “Don’t you get it, Chris? We’ve got the Federation up a wall. Their technology progressed rapidly fifty years ago, and they became a powerful island nation.”

“But being an advanced civilization is tough, right?” Viktor said. “You need a lot of resources from the continent. But Elven Garde attacked before they could get a toehold on the continent.”

“Or, rather, the Federation lured them in. After that, no one would agree to some unknown game that even the strongest nation lost to, four times no less. So, they couldn’t get onto the continent. They should’ve just consigned themselves to being an island nation,” Yuuri concluded. “So, several questions remained.”

Viktor grinned, leaning across the head of the long table. “Question 1: why wipe all memories of the game?”

“They have to,” Yuuri answered, confidently. “Or they won’t be able to always win. It goes counter to luring others into playing. They wipe memories because there’s something they want to keep secret, but even if you erase people’s memories, the fact remains that they lost.”

“Question 2,” Viktor continued. “Why did Elven Garden challenge them four times?”

“To learn what the game was from the result of their loss.” Yuuri smirked. “Elven Garde’s a big country, they could afford to suffer some losses to do their research. They lost once, then reasoned it was a game where you can’t use magic. They’d think that was the most likely reason an Elf would lose, so they prepare a counter strategy and challenge a second time, only to lose again. The third time, they figured out the game. They use official cheats using magic, and then challenge you a fourth time. But then they lose again.”

“You have a vivid imagination,” Emil interrupted, gritting his teeth.

“Still, the process by which they lost doesn’t matter,” Viktor said, ignoring him. “Why did they stop after the fourth time? Well there are two possibilities.”

“One,” Yuuri said, “they realized the game was fundamentally impossible to win.”

“But no, because if that were the case, they could’ve exposed that during a fifth game and won,” Viktor said. “That leaves option 2…”

Yurio cut in this time, standing up with wide eyes. “They learned the game, but they still couldn’t figure out why they lost. That’s why they stopped challenging.”

“Very good, Yurio!” Viktor beamed. “Which leads us to question 3! What game could work on all these very different races?”

“It would have to be one invented by the Eastern Federation, using technology only they possess,” Yuuri finished, smiling smugly. “Video games. Where you can cheat all you want.”

“Video game?” Chris and Yurio both repeated, confused.

“You guys wouldn’t know, would you?” Viktor grinned, his suspicions confirmed. “But, Chris, you challenged the Eastern Federation once before. How come you’ve never seen the screen in the lobby before?”

Chris’s face went slack. “But…”

“You’d forgotten it,” Yuuri answered. “Because it was associated with your memory of the game.”

“It’s then safe to say that the only country on Disboard with video games is the Eastern Federation. That’s why you erase memories, because in a video game where you’re the game master, you can cheat to your heart’s content. And your opponents, with no understanding of your technology, have no way to figure that out!”

“That mind-reading nonsense is just calling your cheats a sixth sense, so opponents don’t look any closer,” Yuuri concluded. They were watching Emil and Michele now, their faces stony.

“You can tell when someone’s lying,” Viktor added. “You can read their physiological signs, probably better than any race. But you can’t read minds. Not by a long shot. So, last question! How did we come up with this answer?”

“I’ll give this one to you straight,” Yuuri said, eyes shining. “Yurio?”

“Grandpa couldn’t tell anyone anything,” Yurio said, with great satisfaction, “which proves that you couldn’t read his mind. Because he pledged to not tell anyone for as long as he lived, and his pledge doesn’t apply after he’s died. He trapped you, and you had no idea.” He ended his speech with a grin, his heart bursting with pride.

Emil’s face finally cracked into one of shock. Michele was gripping the table now, knuckles white.

“So, now you know we know all about your game. If we were to give this information to, say, the Elves, you’d soon be put in a position where you had to play a game,” Yuuri said, as they began to circle back around the table to take their seats once more.

“You need to erase our memories, but if you’re willing to bet your territory just for my fiancé, that would mean my imagination is correct. Your only option is to claim that it’s all lies, and run away from our challenge,” Viktor crossed his legs again, relaxing into the cushions with a smirk. 

“But did you think we’d let you run?” Yuuri asked. “We’ll throw in something else…” 

Viktor held his hand out. “All of Imanity.” His hand began to glow, and he slammed their race piece down on the table. Yurio gasped, looking at the marking glowing above his heart. “I bet our race piece!”

“Are you insane?!” Yurio finally shouted, standing up in shock. “That’s a death sentence!” However, he was ignored.

“I’ve bet our entire territory, and the lives of all three million Imanity,” Viktor declared, fingers tightening over the race piece as he leaned over the table. “If you run away now, you’ll be telling the entire world that our _imagination_ is correct. Did you see that coming, mind reader?”

“Checkmate,” Yuuri murmured.

“Are you sure about this?” Emil asked, gravely. “Even if you’re correct, Elven Garde still lost this game. You’re betting your race piece- do you _want_ to go extinct?”

Viktor cocked his head to the right. “Do you remember when I communicated with you from our library? If you hadn’t been surprised by that, you would’ve noticed that we’re not from this world. When it comes to video games, you can use any cheats or tool assists you want.”

“We’re not about to lose to any of those,” Yuuri said, determined. “When we came here, did you think we’d be easy prey?”

“It’s your turn to be hunted, Warbeasts.”

Emil and Michele watched them in silent shock.

Finally, Viktor loosened up. He offered them a friendly smile and dropped his arms. “Well, you can’t agree to a game of this scale on your own, right? We can do this another day.”

“We’re betting our race piece, so all of Imanity has the right to watch. And we’ll compete with these four players. We won’t let you refuse,” Yuuri said, standing. The others followed his lead, Viktor reaching for their glowing race piece.

“You’re challenging me to a fight,” Michele said, coldly. “I won’t refuse.”

Viktor blinked. “A fight? No, Mickey, we’re challenging you to a game.”

“I won’t lose.”

“You will,” Viktor promised.

“Love never loses,” Yuuri finished.

* * *

“Are you both insane?” Chris asked, morbidly curious.

They had arrived back at the palace long ago. Yurio took the chance to scream profanities at both Viktor and Yuuri throughout the entire carriage trip back as well as the entire walk up the palace and to the throne room.

“Do you realize what you’ve done?” Yurio demanded. “You… you’re mad.”

“Calm down, Yurio, it’s just a game,” Viktor said, flippantly.

Yurio’s hands shook in silent rage, unable to even come up with the words to express how he was feeling.

Chris sighed. “I think you’re both crazy, as well,” he admitted, “but I respect your boldness, to stake your own life and those of Imanity even for an instant to slay your enemy. That’s what we need in a ruler; someone willing to protect their own people even if it means certain death for another nation.”

Both Yuuri and Viktor blinked.

“What?” they both asked, confused.

“You mean, you guys haven’t figured it out, already?” Viktor asked, looking genuinely baffled.

“Huh?”

“The way to beat this world,” Yuuri elaborated.

“To beat this world?” Chris and Yurio both echoed, completely lost.

Viktor tapped his chin with his finger, contemplatively. Yuuri’s eyebrows were furrowed.

“That explains it,” Viktor said, frowning. “No wonder God’s so bored.”

“The poor triplets…” Yuuri shook his head sympathetically. They looked at each other for a split second, exchanging matching expressions. Then, they turned back.

“Don’t worry, we’ll conquer the world,” Viktor assured them. “Just like we promised. I told you, there’s no way we’ll lose, right?”

“Checkmate,” Yuuri confirmed.


	8. Chapter 8 - Yuuri

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri wakes up in a world without Viktor.

For the next week, the crowds were gathered outside the palace, shouting and raging against their once beloved leaders. Yuuri and Viktor found themselves sitting on the throne, curled up together and playing a video game.

“That’s quite a change in attitude from the admiration you received at your coronation,” Chris mused, peeking out the window.

“They were all suddenly given death sentences, what did you expect?” Yurio asked, dully. “I’m surprised they’re this calm. What are you two going to do about them?”

“They can try to steal the throne from us if they’re dissatisfied,” Yuuri said, offhandedly.

“They’re upset, but too cowardly to challenge us. I’m more concerned about how long this is taking, honestly. It’s been a week already,” Viktor mused. Yuuri peeked up at him curiously.

“You mean the Federation’s naming of a date for the game?” Chris asked. “Their whole continent’s at stake, so it’ll probably take them some time.”

“That too,” Viktor said. “So before that, I guess we’ll just have to wait for someone with more backbone to come.” 

“Huh?” Yuuri managed, blinking a few times. His vision was a little hazy from lack of sleep, but he was pretty sure someone had entered the throne room. Yurio and Chris’s attention had also been caught.

“You sure kept me waiting,” Viktor called out, shutting off his phone and sliding off the throne. “I know what you want, anytime is fine.”

“Viktor?” Yuuri asked, dazedly. Viktor turned to look at him, holding his hands. 

“Yuuri, listen to me,” he murmured. “I love you, so much. I believe in you. We’re always one, from now on, remember?” He kissed Yuuri’s ring.

Yuuri blinked. “Of course,” he said, softly. “I love you too. We’re bound by our promises to one another.”

Viktor smiled. “We’re not heroes, Yuuri. We’ve always won the game before we’ve even begun.”

“Viktor?”

“I’m going to get the last piece we need to win the Eastern Federation,” Viktor said, then straightened and turned. "I love you, Yuuri Katsuki."

“Viktor!” Yuuri slid out of the throne, reaching for him. Why was the world flickering? Everything was blurry. Then, his hand passed right through Viktor. He disappeared. “Vitya?”

_“Okay, shall we start the game now?”_

* * *

Yuuri woke up with a splitting headache. The bed felt cold- why was it cold? Why was everything cold?

He reached over, only to find Viktor’s side of the bed empty. His heart flipped.

Yuuri sat up straight, looking around furiously. Where was he? Ever the morning person, Viktor would always wake before him, stroking his hair and watching him until Yuuri finally woke up. Viktor _never_ left him in the mornings- not since they’d moved in together and started dating. 

He curled up in the corner of his bed, trembling. “Viktor…”

“Katsudon, it’s time to get up!” Yurio walked in, and frowned at the sight of him. 

“Viktor,” Yuuri whispered, peeking out from the blankets. “Where’s… where’s Viktor?”

“Viktor?” Yurio repeated, confused.

Everything shattered around him. He held up his hand, only to find it empty. No ring.

“Viktor,” he whispered. His mind flickered back to his last clear memory, reaching for Viktor, only for him to disappear before his very eyes.

“Katsudon, are you okay?” Yurio asked, hesitantly.

Yuuri looked up at him, eyes welling with tears. “Where… where’s Viktor?” he asked, heartbreaking. “Where is my fiancé?”

The prince blanched. “Fiancé?” Yurio repeated, blankly. He stared at Yuuri, completely lost. 

Yuuri felt like his entire world was crumbling. 

Yurio spoke up again, cautious. “Who’s Viktor?”

* * *

_They told Yuuri he was a genius. He played games, but none of them were any fun. The first eleven years of his life were dull, gray. Lifeless, pointless. Until he met Viktor._

_Viktor, with beautiful, long silver hair, and bright blue eyes. He smiled and laughed, all the things that Yuuri hardly ever did. It made other kids nervous to be around him, and adults wary when they watched him. But Viktor smiled charmingly, laughed when it was expected, told his parents and the world everything that they wanted to hear._

_But Yuuri could tell the smile was empty._

_“Are you ready to play?” Viktor asked him, a smirk on his face as he took his seat across from him, on the other side of the chess board._

* * *

“Who’s Viktor?” Yurio asked, genuinely confused.

“Love…” Yuuri whispered. “It doesn’t… no Agape, no Eros. It doesn’t exist.”

Then world went dark, muted. Blacks and whites, varying shades of gray. Yuuri fell forward, clutching the sheets as tears ran down his cheeks.

“D-did you have a bad dream or something?” Yurio asked, shakily. He rushed forward, trying to calm Yuuri’s panic attack. His voice was far away, though, like Yuuri was underwater.

“No!” Yuuri sobbed. “He’s always… he’s always with me. Viktor, where is he?”

A whisper. _Yuuri_ …

Yuuri’s head snapped up. He shot out of bed, running out of the room and ignoring Yurio’s cry of, “Yuuri!” 

He didn’t stop running until he was in their small room in the city. The bed was cold, and only their tablet sat on the pillow.

“Yuuri?” Chris was floating behind him. “Yurio was quite panicked. He told me you’d run off. Are you okay?”

Yuuri reached for his phone, frantically flickering through it for any sort of evidence of Viktor.

No contact information, despite the fact that Viktor was his only contact in his phone for years. No photos, not even the stupid blurry ones that Viktor snuck whenever Yuuri wasn’t paying attention. No text messages of Viktor teasingly flirting with him, despite only being a couple feet away.

Nothing.

Yuuri let the phone fall from his hands onto the bed.

“Chris?” he asked, brokenly. “Who did you swear loyalty to?”

“Yuuri, you’re scaring me-“

“Just answer!” Yuuri snapped, harshly.

“… you, Yuuri,” he answered, finally. “And the rest of Imanity.”

“Then, who beat you?” Yuuri asked, his breath hitching.

“You, Yuuri.”

“And, and who made Yurio his apprentice?”

“I’m told it was you, Yuuri.”

“Who found out about the Eastern Federation’s game?”

“You did, aided by what Yurio’s grandfather left us,” Chris said, hesitantly. “I was taken by your brilliance, your strategic mind. I answer to you, only.”

Yuuri’s hands trembled. “Just me?”

“Yes, of course,” Chris said, softly. “You, Yuuri Katsuki, ruler of Elchea and designated representative of Imanity.”

“No…” Yuuri sobbed, curling his arms around his knees. “No, no, no!”

* * *

There was a knock at the door, several hours after Yuuri had kicked Chris out and demanded no one disturb him, on pain of death. He had spent hours crying his eyes out, miserable and empty and cold. Everything was just still so _cold_.

“Yuuri?” Chris asked, gently. “Do you want to play a game?”

No, he didn’t. That was the last thing he wanted to do, to play a game without Viktor. Still, he dragged himself off the bed and peeked out the door to find Chris and Yurio. Chris smiled at him. Yurio was standing behind him, frowning.

“What?” he croaked, his voice shot from the hours of crying.

“We think you’ve had false memories implanted in you,” Chris explained, as kindly as possible. “We should play a game, that way we can fix it.”

“False memories?” Yuuri echoed, blankly.

Chris bowed his head. “I know it’s rude for me to ask, but would you please lose?”

They found themselves back in the Royal Chambers, playing chess. Yuuri moved the pieces randomly, not even looking at the board. If he looked, he would start making calculations, start imagining the pathways and possibilities to victory.

“That’s check,” Chris said. Yurio was sitting next to Yuuri, hesitant and unsure how to comfort him.

 _False memories…_ Yuuri thought, bitterly. _Are they really false? Is Viktor… is Viktor not real? Is that why these memories are fading?_

_“I love you.” A whisper in the ear, a hand caressing his cheek._

_“I love you too,” Yuuri murmured._

_They’re… disappearing,_ Yuuri thought, mindlessly moving another piece.

_“Stay with me forever, Viktor, until the day we die.” Yuuri requested, crying._

_“Forever, moya lyubov.” A kiss on the back of his hand._

_They’re all... false? Lies? Maybe if they disappear, I’ll feel better_ \- Yuuri reached for the king, ready to move it to its final position that would ensure Chris’s victory.

Then, something stopped him.

There was a hand on his wrist. A hand with a golden band on its ring finger. Yuuri looked up, and for a moment, could see Viktor.

He was mouthing something that Yuuri couldn’t hear, but he knew in his heart anyways. _On love_.

Then, he was gone.

“Yuuri?” Chris asked.

“Love doesn’t lose,” Yuuri whispered, finally looking at the chessboard in front of him. His mind automatically flickered through thousands of routes, but he wasn’t thinking about that. He focused on Viktor; his memories of him were disappearing, but the feeling was still there. The ache in his chest, the way his heart fluttered every time they touched, even years after they had first met. How much Yuuri loved him, and how much Viktor loved him back… a feeling couldn’t disappear, even if the memories were fading.

“Love doesn’t lose,” he repeated, picking up a knight and slamming it into place, not only effectively cutting off Chris’s strategy, but also ending the game with a checkmate. Color flickered back into Yuuri’s world, for the first time since the day began.

“Why did you win?” Chris asked, frowning.

“Because I know he’s real!” Yuuri shouted, clenching his fists.

“Viktor?” Chris asked, confused. “But, Yuuri-“

“He is!” he screamed. “Viktor is real, he is real!”

Chris looked frazzled, now, unsure of how to deal with his tears and anger. “Please, Yuuri, think rationally-”

“I think he’s right,” Yurio interrupted suddenly, frowning. “It… it makes sense, doesn’t it?”

“Huh?” Chris looked up. Yuuri stifled another sob to look up as well, heart pounding.

“I think he does exist. Because,” he paused, and looked down to meet Yuuri’s hopeful gaze. His jaw tightened in determination. “I know you two would never lose! No one would ever get the chance to modify your memories.”

Yuuri sobbed in relief. “Yurio…”

Chris still seemed doubtful. “But-“

“There must be another reason, something else caused this,” Yurio insisted, firm in his belief.

Yuuri’s eyes widened as they began to bicker. He scrambled for his phone, and said, “Both of you, what did you do yesterday?”

Yurio looked thoughtful. “Um, I was dealing with the demonstrations all day. After that, you played a game in the throne room.”

Yuuri looked at his screen, and felt his heart skip a beat. “That was two days ago. The 19th.” He turned his phone around, showing that the date was currently the 21st.

They both looked baffled.

“I’ll change my question,” Yuuri said, forcing himself to take a calming breath. “Where were you two nights ago?”

“So the same night, then,” Chris said, frowning. “I… I don’t remember.”

“No,” Yuuri agreed. “None of us do.”

A stunned silence.

“If Viktor does exist… then how could he have disappeared?” Chris asked.

“How could there be a way to make all of our memories of the last day and a half disappear?” Yurio frowned.

“A large-scale magic spell?” Chris suggested. “But, it would have to leave a trace.”

“What if it was a game?” Yuuri asked, frowning at his empty hand in concentration. It felt weird, without his ring. He had developed a habit of fidgeting with it, and his body seemed to remember the action. His fingers would twitch and try to touch the cool gold band, only to find it missing. “What if a game was held in accordance with the Pledges, and that was part of the rules?”

“If the game involved the representative of Imanity, it would affect our whole race. And Chris, too, since he’s bound to you and Viktor,” Yurio conceded. “But what kind of game could that be?”

“I don’t know…” Yuuri closed his eyes, trying to remember the last memory he had of Viktor.

_I love you, I believe in you._

_The two of us are always one._

“Viktor would never leave me alone…” he said.

There was a whisper. _Yuuri? Are you there?_

Yuuri’s head snapped up and he looked around the empty room frantically. “Viktor?”

 _Would you hold me somewhere, anywhere I can still feel?_ The whisper was faint.

“Viktor!” he shouted, desperately.

No response.

Yuuri fell to his knees.

“Yuuri…”

He held a hand up, and Yurio fell silent.

_Think, think, even if it completely burns you out. What is happening? Viktor trusts me, I can’t fail him._

Yuuri squeezed his eyes shut.

Viktor had said they were always one, so he _must_ be here with him. They always win every game, before it even starts. They’re bound by their promises.

He had said he was going to get the last thing they needed to face the Eastern Federation. So, what would Viktor think was so essential to their cause that he would wipe himself out of existence for it? Some tool, something to be used against the Eastern Federation. Maybe even someone who had beaten them before…

Like an elf.

Viktor was trying to get an Elf on their side, but how? He wouldn’t try to challenge Elven Garde, not at this stage. But…

Seung-gil? He didn’t trust Viktor and Yuuri, he didn’t believe in them. He would never agree…

Unless Viktor showed him how trustworthy they were.

Yuuri’s eyes snapped open.

“What if the game was to steal each other’s existence?”

The world went black.

* * *

“A game to steal each other’s existence?” Seung-gil asked, sneering.

“Yes,” Viktor answered, sitting cross-legged. A board appeared in front of them. “These thirty-two stones comprise your existence. They reflect the importance your subconscious has placed on them and are ranked from one up.”

Yuuri, Chris, and Yurio stood behind Viktor, watching them quietly. The Elf, Phichit, stood at Seung-gil’s side. 

“The thing is, you won’t know which stone constitutes what part of you,” Viktor continued, “until your opponent moves and you’ve lost it. For example, that Elf there next to you, or your arms, legs, nerves… In the end, your very existence is taken, and no one will have known you. Put simply, you’ll disappear.”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course,” Viktor responded, with a smile. “Pledge 5: the challenged party has the right to decide the content of the game. If you don’t like it, the game is off. Well?”

Phichit placed a hand on Seung-gil’s shoulder, drawing his attention. “Seung…”

He scowled. “Phi, these two said they would bet Imanity’s race piece. I don’t have a choice.”

Viktor grinned, unashamed. “You could just believe Yuuri and I, and just give me the Elf.”

“Never.”

“I thought so.”

Seung-gil’s face twitched. “What will you bet?”

“Let’s say the winner can make two demands of the loser. We could make the results of the game permanent, for example, and alter the memories of our partners so they would join us,” Viktor proposed.

“In other words, we’re betting our entire existence, and complete rights over our partners, right?”

“That’s right,” Viktor confirmed, smiling mysteriously.

“Tch,” Seung-gil glowered. “You’re mad.”

Viktor laughed. “Then I’ll propose one more important rule…” He looked up at Yuuri.

“Viktor…”

* * *

His eyes opened.

“Yuuri, are you okay?” Chris asked, eyebrows furrowed in concern.

Yuuri sat up, shaking. “Viktor!” He looked out, but the room was still empty aside from the three of them.

He felt his heart fall in disappointment. “Chris, can you make a game where you steal each other’s existences?”

“No, that’s… that’d be impossible. Maybe in a virtual world, like Materialization Word Chain, but even that’s undone in the end.” Chris bowed his head.

Yuuri took a deep breath. “What if you collaborated with an Elf?”

Chris’s eyes widened. “Collaborate with an Elf? There’s- there’s no way I would ever-“

“Chris.” His voice was cold. “Could you?”

For once, Chris swallowed his pride. “They do have a measure of skill when it comes to crafting complicated spells,” he admitted, grudgingly. “So… yes, it might be possible.”

“So, Viktor erased his own existence by playing this game?” Yurio demanded. “Wouldn’t that mean he’s already lost and been erased?”

“If he won, he’d be here, wouldn’t he?” Chris added.

“What if it’s neither?” Yuuri realized. “The game is still underway.”

“That’s… impossible,” Yurio muttered.

Yuuri got off the bed, examining the room with newfound determination. “Chris, see if you can detect any magic in here!”

Chris nodded, standing straighter and placing his hands together. Multicolored seals appeared, and his eyes shut in concentration.

“I woke up here, even though Viktor and I don’t sleep here anymore. That must mean something,” Yuuri said. “He wouldn’t leave me alone unless he had no choice.”

The lights from Chris’s magic faded, and he turned. “Magic has definitely been used here, but I can’t tell its precise location.”

“At this rate, we’ll have to search the whole room to even have a chance of- ahh!” Yurio tripped down the small steps and fell, groaning in pain.

“I didn’t take you to be clumsy, little kitten,” Chris teased.

“Shut up!” he grumbled, rubbing his hip. “Huh? What’s this?” Yurio lifted his hand, picking up something from the ground.

“An Othello stone?” Yuuri recognized.

“That’s the number three in Elf language,” Chris said, examining one of the stones closer.

A few feet away, there were three more stones.

“Why just those stones?” Yurio asked.

“Because they haven’t been used,” Yuuri realized. “They’re here, even if we can’t sense them.” He dropped the stones.

“But all we know is there are still two sets of three stones,” Yurio huffed. “We don’t even know if we’re white or black.”

“That’s simple,” Yuuri said, standing and walking over to the other set of stones. “Viktor said that we are one. I’m part of this game too, I always am.”

_“I’ll propose one more important rule: each of our partners will play in the game. If one of us can’t continue, our partner can play for us,” Viktor explained._

“That’s why I still had my memories…”

“Can you see it? The board?” Yurio asked, as he and Chris cautiously stepped closer.

“No, I can’t,” Yuuri admitted, slowly. “But… I can see what Viktor would do.”

_“You’re deliberately trying to lose, aren’t you?” Seung-gil accused._

_“No,” Viktor assured him. “I’ve just set everything up so that I win.”_

Viktor would lead his opponent on…

_The stones flipped._

_Seung-gil’s eyes widened. “What… what is this? Your memories? You’re making me steal your memories to prove there’s no other race working with you?”_

_“Not a bad answer.” Viktor chuckled._

How would he tell Yuuri what he wanted to do?

_Seung-gil placed a stone down._

_Viktor fell to the floor, and disappeared. Yuuri, Chris, and Yurio all looked blankly into the distance before walking off, not noticing Phichit and Seung-gil still sitting across from them._

But the game hadn’t ended. There were still three pieces left.

How would Viktor deceive his opponent, and, most importantly, how would he win?

In his mind’s eye, he could picture the board. Yuuri knew Viktor better than he knew himself. He could imagine every scenario of the game, every move that Viktor would make. He could imagine every move between Viktor and Seung-gil, every placement of the stone, and every resulting flip. The further he imagined the game, the lighter Yuuri’s heart became.

 _Viktor, you’re a genius_ , he thought, either on the verge of tears or the verge of laughter. _No one would figure this out. No one but you, and me._

The moves stopped, leaving only three moves remaining.

 _The part of you inside these last three stones…_ He placed one stone down, causing a row of others to appear and flip, white side up. _Three, the way to win the game._

Another stone, another three rows flipped to show their white side. _Two, your absolute trust in me_.

 _And one…_ Yuuri held the last stone, and clutched it close to his heart. _Everything that I am._

“Viktor…” Yuuri murmured, kissing his finger, right where his ring should be. “Come back to me!”

He slammed the last piece down, causing every other black side to flip up. The stones glowed, and suddenly, it was like the world had shattered. Yuuri stared as Viktor appeared, lying on the ground in front of him.

For one terrifying moment, nothing happened. Then, Viktor shot up, coughing and gasping for breath.

“Viktor!” Yuuri cried out.

Viktor wheezed, finally managing to get his breathing under control. “Yuuri…” he said, smiling widely. Then, he winced. “Okay, hit me if you want, I completely deserve it.”

Yuuri’s bottom lips trembled. The stress of the past day was suddenly weighing heavier than ever.

Viktor’s eyes widened. “Oh no, Yuuri…”

“I’m sorry,” Yuuri whispered, tears blurring his vision. He threw himself onto Viktor, sobbing. “I’m sorry, I should’ve come sooner!” 

Viktor exhaled, pulling Yuuri into a tight hug.

“No,” he whispered. “You did amazing, Yuuri. I love you.” 

Yuuri let out another hiccuping sob. “I love you too.”

“Viktor!” Chris gasped. “I can’t believe… I forgot you.”

“What the hell happened?” Yurio demanded, looking confused and worried at the same time.

“Seung-gil, wake up! Seung-gil please!” Phichit was crying out, shaking Seung-gil desperately. He had fallen over, staring emptily at nothing.

Viktor managed to extract himself from Yuuri’s grip, reaching down to hold his hand. He placed a gentle kiss on his ring, newly appeared, and stood up. “Now then,” he said, addressing the Elf currently crying on their carpet. “As agreed, I will make my demands.”

Phichit’s eyes widened. “You can do whatever you want with me, but leave Seung-gil alone!” he begged.

Viktor merely grinned. “Demand number one!”

“Don’t!”

“We return each other’s memories, but we keep a copy for ourselves,” Viktor declared.

Phichit’s eyes widened. “Huh?”

Seung-gil sprang up, gasping for breath.

Phichit squealed, wrapping himself around Seung-gil in relief. “Seung-gil!” he cried.

Seung-gil took a few slower breaths, lifting himself up on his hands. He looked up at Viktor, and smirked. 

“What the hell just happened?” Yurio demanded, astounded.

“They have each other’s memories now,” Chris explained, grinning. “Seung-gil and Viktor. So, now they can trust each other completely. This is the last piece Viktor needed to get.”

“Second demand,” Viktor said, smirking. “You, Elf. I’m taking the right to alter your memories.”

“What?” Phichit looked puzzled.

“It’s okay, Phi,” Seung-gil spoke up. He looked back at the Elf, offering a small, rare smile. “He only wants one thing. You want us to spy for you, don’t you?”

Viktor chuckled. “You’ve been inside my head, all right.”

“Oh no,” Yurio groaned. “Now there’s two of him!”

“Spy?” Phichit repeated, confused. “What does he mean?”

“We’ll talk later,” Seung-gil assured him, then turned back to address Viktor. “After seeing everything in your head, I’ve changed my mind about you. Count me in.”

“You’re amazing, Viktor,” Yuuri whispered, squeezing his hand tightly.

Viktor gave him a dazzling smile, bringing up Yuuri's hand close to his face and placing a gentle kiss on his newly reappeared gold ring. “Of course!” he boasted. “Feel free to keep complimenting me, _solnyshko!_ ”

Yuuri wiped the tears from his eyes. “I’m proud of you, love.”

Viktor’s cheeks reddened. Suddenly, he was tackling Yuuri to the ground, kissing him deeply. “I love you,” he gasped out, breaking apart.

“I love you too,” Yuuri said back, holding his face in his hands.

“Are we okay now?” Viktor asked, gently.

“Hmm…” Yuuri pretended to think about it. He reached up, brushing Viktor’s hair out of his face to get a better look at him. “Well, I guess I have to, don’t I?”

“Huh?” Viktor’s eyebrows rose.

“Well, I’m not going to be mad at you a couple days before our wedding!” Yuuri laughed.

“Huh?!" Viktor looked panicked. “But you wanted us to wait until-“

“I changed my mind,” Yuuri said, grinning up at Viktor. “Viktor Nikiforov, will you marry me?”

His eyes widened, then his face broke out into a smile. “You always find new ways to surprise me, don’t you?” he chuckled. “Yes, Yuuri. You know my answer will forever and always be yes to you.”

Yuuri pulled him down for another kiss before he pulled away, helping Yuuri sit up.

Seung-gil was reaching for Phichit’s hand. “Phi…” he murmured.

Phichit smiled back. “Seung-gil,” he responded, eyes wet.

Suddenly, it was like a dam broke, letting the waterworks begin to flow.

Viktor was crying, throwing himself around Yuuri like an overgrown octopus. “That was terrifying!” he wailed. “I’m never doing that ever again!”

“I’ll kill you if you ever disappear like that!” Yuuri sobbed.

“I was so scared!” Phichit cried, while Seung-gil buried his face into the crook of his neck and his shoulders shook with silent sobs.

“This… isn’t where I thought it would go,” Yurio muttered.

“That’s our king and queen for you,” Chris chuckled.

Yuuri squeezed his eyes shut, and breathed in the familiar scent of Viktor around him. For the first time all day, all he could feel only warmth.


	9. Chapter 9 - Seung-gil

Seung-gil didn’t quite know what to expect when Viktor called for a meeting the following day. He wondered if the other man wanted to force them all to be friends, but surely even Viktor was not so naive as to believe they could so easily agree to friendship. Seung-gil had all of Viktor’s memories, but the man was still somewhat of a mystery in some aspects.

“What are we all doing here?” Yurio complained, eyeing everyone at the round table. Unsurprisingly, he looked unhappy to be there, and was currently glaring at the king and queen.

Yuuri was sitting on Viktor’s lap, idly playing with the device in his hands that Seung-gil recognized as a phone, thanks only to Viktor’s memories. Yurio was sitting in between them and Phichit, who was on Seung-gil’s left. There was an open chair between Seung-gil and Viktor, since Chris was floating behind the king and queen instead.

“Don’t be so cranky, Yurio,” Viktor said, playing with Yuuri’s hair.

“How can I not be?” Yurio snapped back. “You two didn’t let me sleep last night because you kept forcing me to try on suits!” 

“You’re our flower girl, Yurio,” Yuuri explained, setting his phone down. “You need to look the part.”

“I can’t be the flower girl to your wedding if I murder the both of you,” Yurio threatened.

“Aw, Yurio, no need to be mean! Besides, we settled on a baby pink tie for you,” Viktor said cheerfully.

Yurio sighed. “Does that mean we’re done with fittings?” he asked, hope creeping into his voice.

“Well, Yuuri and I have already been fitted for our suits,” Viktor said, brightening at the thought. “Yuuri looks _ravishing_ in that blue suit-“

Yuuri laughed, playfully hitting him on the leg. “Forget me; _you_ look amazing in that purple suit,” he purred.

Viktor kissed him, giggling. “Well,” he drawled out, teasingly, “I bet I look even better when the suit is on our bedroom floor.”

Yuuri was giggling and beaming. He pulled Viktor into another kiss, throwing his arms around his neck.

Seung-gil wanted to gag. 

“Are they always like this?” he asked, though he already knew the answer.

Yurio and Chris both let out simultaneous groans. “Yes,” they both said, shaking their heads in annoyance.

“Aw, Seung-gil, I think it’s cute!” Phichit grinned. Seung-gil sent him a look of exasperation, but Phichit just winked. He was cheerful as ever, though he had been watching the king and queen with a soft expression.

“We should get started on the meeting,” Yuuri said, pulling away reluctantly. He turned to face the table again.

“Spying,” Yurio said, frowning. “What’s up with that?”

“Well,” Viktor said, smile twisting into a smirk. “We bet Imanity’s race piece because we knew it would force Seung-gil to make contact. Then, we won the game he challenged us to.”

Seung-gil nodded, unsurprised. “You thought that if you gave me your memories during the game you could bring me to your side without even using the Pledges.”

“That’s crazy,” Phichit murmured, eyes wide.

“That’s Viktor,” Yuuri corrected, smiling.

“What use is an ally who can’t trust you completely?” Viktor asked, with a shrug. “It would be far better in the long run if you joined me because you wanted to, not because you were forced to.”

“Though, nothing I saw in your memories leads me to think you can beat the Federation,” Seung-gil said, frowning at them. “Can you really do it?”

“Sure,” Viktor said, nonchalantly. “Of course we can. But that leads me to the real reason I’ve brought you all here.”

“If we’re all gonna fight together,” Yuuri continued, while Viktor laced their fingers together on the table, “we need to do something very important.”

He paused, letting his serious tone sink in with the group. Seung-gil felt himself lean forward with a frown in anticipation. 

Viktor broke the silence. “Ice breakers!” he cried, smiling ridiculously.

Chris fell to the ground from behind him. Yurio’s head made contact with the table while Yuuri let out a sigh. Seung-gil and Phichit exchanged looks of confusion.

“Why now?” Chris asked.

“If we’re going to be allies, we all need to trust one another,” Viktor explained, impatiently. “Now, Seung-gil, you start!”

Seung-gil stared at Viktor incredulously. He opened his mouth to protest, but Phichit nudged him and gave him a pointed look.

 _Be nice_ , it seemed to say.

Seung-gil scowled, making a face. Finally, he said, “Seung-gil Lee.”

“… that’s it?” Yurio asked, frowning. “Don’t you have anything else?”

“I don’t,” he said, shortly.

Viktor rolled his eyes, and began to filter through the memories he had kept from Seung-gil. 

“Twenty years old, 170 centimeters, he’s a Gemini, and his blood type is AB.” He grinned, suddenly, earning a suspicious look from the dark-haired young man. “And, one time he lost a game to Phichit and he had to-“

“Stop!” Seung-gil yelped, face burning in embarrassment. He knew exactly what Viktor was about to say, and he didn’t want to hear it. Phichit was grinning, trying to stifle his laughter. “I’ll do it, jeez. But I have to introduce Phichit first.” He glanced at the Elf, who was smiling at him encouragingly.

“Hi, I’m Phichit Chulanont,” he said, waving at everyone at the table cheerily. “It’s nice to meet you!” Then, his eyes locked onto Chris, and the smile turned a little deadly. It sent a chill down Seung-gil’s spine; he could think of only a small handful of times he’d ever seen that look on Phichit’s face. “Except for that demon.”

Chris was smiling back, something dangerous in his eyes. Seung-gil tensed; Phichit could handle himself, but he didn’t trust the Flügel as far as he could throw him.

“Oh dear,” he said, sweetly, “you don’t sound like you like me much at all. Why could that be?”

Phichit’s smile was quickly turning into a snarl. “Oh, well, maybe it has something to do with the fact that every time I see you, I think of how many of my people died in the Great War during an attack by a certain Flügel.”

“Defendant Chris, your plea?” Viktor asked, turning to face the floating Flügel.

Chris smiled innocently. “Well, if you had known your place and not put anti-flight magic in your airspace, I wouldn’t have even noticed you. You got what you deserved. You made me fall from the sky and get a bump on my head.” He pouted at the end of this. “Can you really blame me if I accidentally kill you all as a result?”

Yurio squeezed his eyes tight, looking like he regretted every single decision he’s made up until this point. Seung-gil eyed Phichit, who was still smiling, but he could tell he was silently seething on the inside.

“Right…” Viktor muttered, a little incredulous. “Yuuri?”

“As the judge, I say the defendant is guilty,” the queen deadpanned.

“What?!” Chris complained, pouting as he fell to the ground.

“Phichit,” Yuuri ignored the Flügel in favor of making direct eye-contact with the surprised looking Elf. “We’re going to work together, all of us. I don’t want any grudges to get in the way. What can Chris do to earn your forgiveness?”

Phichit’s look of surprise turned into a thoughtful expression. “That’s a difficult question,” he mused.

“Phich,” Seung-gil said, quietly, “we’ll need his power for Viktor and Yuuri’s plans, so you can’t strip him of magic or anything like I know you’re planning.”

Phichit pouted while Chris scrambled backwards, eyes wide in terror.

“Very well.” Phichit sighed. Then, his face brightened. “I’ll forgive you if you owe me one favor, and you say “Phichit, please forgive me!””

Seung-gil had to choke back a snort.

Chris chuckled, glowering darkly. “You Elves sure are cocky little things, aren’t you? I’ll have you know-“

“Chris,” Yuuri said, sharply. “Guilty.”

He deflated immediately. “But-!” he protested.

“It’s just a favor,” Viktor told him. “Be happy this isn’t Nuremberg.”

“Huh?” Chris looked confused, but Viktor waved it aside.

“Well?” Phichit was smiling widely.

“Just one favor?” Chris asked, warily.

Phichit’s eyes shone mischievously. “I’ll cash it in when I see fit,” he promised, winking. “Don’t worry, Viktor, Yuuri, it won’t interfere with your plans.”

“… fine,” Chris grumbled. “Phichit, please forgive me.”

“Okay! I forgive you!” Phichit beamed, while Seung-gil shook his head in amusement.

“That’s all it took?” Yuuri muttered.

“All it took?” Chris cried, affronted. “Apologizing is the greatest form of humiliation, and owing a favor to an Elf? Unheard of! If I wasn’t completely loyal to you, I would never!”

Seung-gil stared at Chris while he rambled, stunned. _Who are these two, that they’re capable of doing this to a Flügel._

“If we’re airing out our dirty laundry,” Yurio interrupted Chris’s tirade, “then I’ve got a bone to pick with you, Lee. You used magic to cheat me out of that tournament!”

Seung-gil grimaced. “Maybe it’s best if I start from the beginning,” he said, in lieu of an apology. It was enough to get Yurio to sit down, at least. “Phichit is my childhood friend, but he is also my master.”

“What?” They all looked surprised, but Chris merely looked thoughtful.

“Elven Garde is a democracy, but they do maintain a hierarchy and promote the binding of lower ranked races,” Chris explained, scowling. “Basically, they have a slave system.”

“Then, Seung-gil, you’re…” Yurio trailed off.

“Yes. My family has been the slaves of the Chulanont family since the time of my great-grandfather. I was born and raised in Elven Garde.” Seung-gil crossed his arms over his chest, glancing at Phichit. “The Chulanont family is one of the most famous in Elven Garde, and has served the Senate for generations. And Phichit was the only one to treat me like a…”

_“Let’s eat together!” Phichit said, holding out a small bowl of food._

_A much younger Seung-gil eyed the bowl hungrily, but he shook his head. “Phich, you shouldn’t be nice to me anymore. If you treat a slave like a friend…”_

_Phichit merely smiled, uncaring, before barreling into a long conversation about his day, as per usual._

“Like a friend,” Seung-gil finished.

Phichit was smiling sadly. “On the surface, unfortunately, I can’t show any sign of it in public, at Seung-gil’s insistence.”

It was a fight they had, almost on a daily basis. But Seung-gil wasn’t about to risk his only friend being in trouble for being kind to him; he had never been willing to take that risk.

“I don’t like it, but I’ve been the head of the family since last year, and it’s been… complicated.” Phichit sighed.

“So, you’re an acting Senate member?” Yurio’s eyes widened. “And you’re planning to end the slave system? Isn’t that treason?”

“And you’re willing to work with us?” Chris asked, suspiciously. “Helping us could lead to the destruction of Elven Garde.”

Phichit merely smiled. “I’m okay with anything, just as long as Seung-gil doesn’t get hurt.”

Seung-gil looked away, trying to ignore the warmth growing in his face.

“I don’t really care what happens to my family,” Phichit added. “Even I think it would speed things up if the whole country would just disappear.” He beamed.

“That’s… surprisingly brutal,” Yurio said, frowning.

“We need to talk about the Eastern Federation, too,” Seung-gil finally said, trying to get the focus away from him. “When their Shrine Priestess appeared, they became the third largest country in the world in just fifty years. No one really knows how great of a threat they truly pose.”

“Not to mention,” Phichit jumped in. “They have an ability called Blood Destruction. Do we have a plan to counter that?”

“I think if we’re going to fight this together, what we’ll need is some good old-fashioned teamwork!” Viktor declared, then his face lit up. “Oh, I have an idea!”

“We’re not all taking a bath together,” Yuuri and Seung-gil deadpanned.

Viktor sputtered. “How did you know-?”

“We’re getting married, Viktor!”

“Did you forget I have all of your memories?”

“I think that sounds fun!” Phichit declared, smiling.

“Oh, I’m certainly interested as well,” Chris purred, leaning on Viktor’s shoulder.

“Come on, Yuuri!” Viktor whined. “It’s just been us two forever now, don’t you miss the hot springs?”

Yuuri pinched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t care,” he said with a sigh. “Good luck convincing Seung-gil and Yurio.”

“Yurio-“

“No.”

“Seung-gil-“

“No.”

“But I-“

“No!” They both shouted.

* * *

Seung-gil opened the doors to the royal chambers. “Hey!” he called, but the room was empty. “Phichit?” He shook his head, walking in and looking around. Where had he wandered off to?

One of the bookcases was missing, and the small door inside the crawl space was swung open. Reluctantly, Seung-gil crawled through and spotted the king and queen sitting at a wooden table, surrounded by several bookshelves.

Yuuri was flipping through what looked like a journal, and Viktor was, for once, the one sitting on Yuuri’s lap, sitting facing him and holding him in a tight hug. Phichit was sitting next to them, chatting with Viktor. He seemed to be showing the Elf something on the device Seung-gil only recognized from Viktor’s memories as a phone.

“Ugh, so you two _are_ like this all the time,” Seung-gil said, walking in. He looked around with a critical eye. “So, this is your strategy to defeat the Federation?”

“Yup,” Viktor said, lifting his head a little to look at the newcomer.

Phichit beamed, holding up the phone. “Hi, Seung-gil! Look, Viktor’s showing me how to take photos with this thing from his world!”

“You don’t seem to be taking this very seriously,” Seung-gil said, lips pursed.

“Really, this is Yuuri’s area now,” Viktor admitted. The queen didn’t make any sort of noise or movement to show any acknowledgement, seemingly completely absorbed in the book. “I’m just here for moral support, and Phichit joined us, so I started showing him how to take pictures with my phone. You came here to ask us if we can really win, right?”

Seung-gil nodded once. “Yes. I’ve looked through your memories, and so far, all of your major victories have been close calls. This time, one misstep, and you and the rest of Imanity is doomed. I don’t think you can win like this.”

“I just have to avoid making a mistake, then, won’t I?” Viktor grinned.

He scoffed. “You can’t honestly say you won’t make a single mistake,” he said, incredulously.

Viktor laughed. “No, no, of course not. If it were just me, I’d screw up, but luckily, I’m a part of a team. If I make a mistake, Yuuri’s there. That’s why Love always wins.”

_“Don’t you want to be friends with me, Seung-gil?” Phichit asked, eyes wide with hurt._

_“That’s not it,” Seung-gil protested, “but if they find out about us and something happens to you…” He swallowed, hands shaking. He wasn’t sure what he would do._

_Phichit looked surprised, but he smiled. “You and I are different.”_

_Seung-gil blinked. “Huh?”_

_“If I make a mistake, you’re there,” he explained. He reached forward, touching Seung-gil’s shoulder. “I want you always looking after me, so I don’t make a foolish mistake and lose a person I care about.” He pulled him close, resting their foreheads together._

_“Phich…”_

Seung-gil looked away, face reddening at the memory. “Did you pull that line from my memories?” he asked, voice soft. Phichit was giggling, putting the phone on the table and standing to hold his hand.

“Who can say?” Viktor winked. “It doesn’t make it any less true.” Then, he brightened. “Oh, I almost forgot.”

“Viktor,” Yuuri suddenly scolded, while Viktor began wiggling around to reach into his bag on the ground.

“Sorry to bother you, _solnyshko_ ,” he said, pulling out two envelopes. “I forgot to give this to them.”

He held out the envelopes for Seung-gil and Phichit to take.

“What… is this?” he asked, taking them in confusion.

“Wedding invitations!” Viktor exclaimed. “Sorry, with everything happening, I forgot to give them to you. The wedding’s tomorrow.”

Seung-gil’s eyes widened. “Tomorrow?” he repeated, stunned.

“Tomorrow?” Phichit repeated, delighted.

“After everything that happened the other day, Yuuri didn’t want to wait,” Viktor chuckled, then yelped when Yuuri pinched him on the thigh.

“Shut up,” Yuuri said, his head slotted perfectly so his chin rested on Viktor’s shoulder. “You wanted it too.”

Seung-gil looked at the envelopes, while Phichit was squealing in delight.

“We’ll be there,” he promised, “but then we’ll have to leave right afterwards. If we spend too much time in Elchea, we may draw unwanted attention to ourselves.”

“Of course,” Viktor nodded. “Don’t worry about dressing too fancy, or anything. It’s a small ceremony.”

Seung-gil nodded, turning to exit with Phichit in hand. Then, he paused.

“Thank you,” Seung-gil added, “for helping me believe in the potential of humanity.”

“Of course,” Viktor said. “You’re human too, don’t forget.”

“Never again.”

* * *

The wedding was a surprisingly short affair. It would’ve been longer, but Seung-gil suspected that Yuuri had put a limit on Viktor’s word count for his vows. Though, the abridged version of his speech probably still could have been summed up in _holy shit I’m so lucky, I love you, you’re amazing,_ and not the ten minute long rant about his undying love that his vows turned out to be.

The after party was also small, to Seung-gil’s relief. He didn’t like crowds, so he was perfectly content with it only being the happy couple, their angry son, the overly-touchy Flügel, Phichit, and himself. They had been planning on opening it up to the public, but given that most of Imanity were still vying for their heads, they decided to keep the ceremony and reception small.

“Congratulations!” Phichit cried, beaming. He held up Viktor’s phone, which he had offered to the Elf at the beginning of the ceremony to take pictures. “Selfie?”

Viktor had been overjoyed with the fact that Phichit had taken to selfies as quickly as a fourteen-year-old girl after Viktor had shown him how to use the camera on his phone. Yuuri and Seung-gil appreciated this fact a lot less, being the most prevalent targets for a spontaneous photo op by the ever-excitable Elf.

“Say, when you renew your vows, I wanna be the best man!” Phichit requested.

“They just got married, Phichit,” Seung-gil said, draining the last of his champagne. “I don’t think they need to renew their vows anytime soon.”

“If I had it my way,” Viktor said, with a wink, “we’d be getting married every month.”

“Viktor,” Yuuri complained.

“We had to compromise on once a year,” Viktor finished.

Phichit laughed, throwing an arm around Seung-gil’s shoulders. “They’re so cute, aren’t they, Seung-gil?”

He rolled his eyes. “Sure,” he deadpanned.

Yurio came over, looking annoyed. “I made pirozhkis for a crowd of fifty, how are we going to finish it all?” he demanded, then pointed at Seung-gil and Phichit. “You two better take some for the road!”

Seung-gil sweat-dropped and Phichit nodded enthusiastically.

“Sure!” he exclaimed. “They were delicious!”

“Let loose, Yurio! Have some fun.” Viktor held out a glass of champagne, which he took.

“Hard to have fun when we all might die tomorrow,” he deadpanned, which, Seung-gil thought, was a fair assessment of the situation. He then shook his head; what was the world coming to, if Plisetsky was the only one making sense?

Yuuri shook his head. “We’re not going to die,” he said. “Relax, okay? Don’t you trust us?”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it, we’re not gonna lose, blah blah,” Yurio grumbled, then downed the entire glass in one gulp.

Chris floated over. “Congratulations, you two,” he purred. “If you’d like to be alone, now, I can tuck the little kitten into bed for you. Dads should have their alone time, especially after their wedding.”

Yurio bristled. “Cut it out with the little kitten bullshit, won’t you?” he complained, not for the first time. “And they’re not my dads!”

“Mmm, we kind of are,” Viktor sang, delighted.

“No!” Yurio groaned.

“They’re teaching you everything they know,” Phichit mused.

“They’re the only ones who can calm you down when you have a temper tantrum,” Chris added.

“They named you heir to the throne if anything happened to them,” Seung-gil said, turning to pick up another glass of champagne.

Silence.

He turned back to see their astonished faces. Viktor and Yuuri looked like a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar. Chris’s eyes were wide and even Phichit looked surprised. Yurio’s head snapped over to look at the king and queen.

“You…” His eyes were as wide as saucers. “You did?” he asked, in a small voice.

Viktor sighed, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “We were trying to keep it a secret for a little while.” He mock-glared at Seung-gil, who shrugged.

“I have your memories, not your intentions,” he said, sipping the champagne. “Sorry for spoiling the surprise, though.”

“Of course we made you our heir,” Yuuri said, ignoring them in favor of smiling softly at Yurio. “You’re one of the best gamblers in Elchea, after all, and you’ve been groomed for the throne since birth. Honestly, we’d both be comfortable handing the throne over to you if we weren’t trying to conquer the world and you weren’t so inexperienced.”

Yurio wiped his eyes. “… you’re still not my dads,” he said, but his voice was softer.

“Don’t talk back to your father, Yurio,” Yuuri scolded, a smile playing out on his face.

Yurio threw his arms up, and slammed the champagne glass on the table. “I’m going to bed. You idiots better get some damn sleep tonight!”

“They won’t,” Chris laughed, but followed the seething Yurio out of the room.

Seung-gil shook his head in amusement. “Phichit and I should be heading out now, too.”

“Of course,” Viktor said with a nod.

“Thanks for coming,” Yuuri added, smiling.

“We’ll walk you out,” Viktor offered, holding his arm out for Yuuri to take. “Queen Yuuri Katsuki-Nikiforov, will you accompany me?”

Yuuri giggled, taking it. “Of course, King Viktor Katsuki-Nikiforov.”

“I love you,” he said, batting his eyes at his husband.

Yuuri practically melted, pulling Viktor into a kiss. “I love you too.”

“You’re both gross,” Seung-gil said, rolling his eyes. Phichit slid his hand into his, smiling.

“I think it’s sweet,” he said, softly, looking up at Seung-gil with a sly smile.

Seung-gil looked away, cheeks burning. “Right,” he muttered.


	10. Chapter 10 - Viktor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Imanity versus Warbeasts game begins.

The carriage leaving the palace for the Eastern Federation embassy was unbelievably over the top and incredibly extra. And Viktor should know, since he was the one who had picked it all out. It was tugged along by two horses, clad in matching gold and red uniforms. The carriage itself was open, so that anyone could see its passengers. Viktor had also requested that Chris sit on the top and flex his wings as ostentatiously as possible to show off that they had a Flügel on their side. Unsurprisingly, Chris had agreed.

As soon as the doors opened, the crowd’s angry shouting could be heard.

“There’s the crazy king and queen!”

“They’re gonna get us all killed!”

“Here they come!”

Yurio was pressing his forehead against the seat in front of him, where Viktor and Yuuri were sitting. Viktor heard Chris laugh as the carriage began moving, and the tell-tale sound of his wings unfurling.

The crowds quieted a bit, shocked by the sudden sight of Chris’s pure white wings spread over each side of the carriage.

“You’re both insane,” Yurio said, “leaving by the front, the way things are. You know that there’s a riot going on right now!”

“It’s not going on,” Viktor said, leaning on his hand and supported by his elbow resting on the side door of the carriage. He looked out at the sea of befuddled protesters, amused. His free hand laced with Yuuri’s. “We made it happen.”

“What does that mean?” Yurio demanded.

Yuuri interrupted. “They parted the crowd to make room for us, so we should pick up the pace, please,” he said, to the driver.

“Let’s go!” Viktor bounced in excitement.

“Don’t ignore me!” Yurio cried out in frustration.

Viktor suddenly stood, tapping the top of the carriage. “Hey, Chris!”

Chris’s head suddenly peeked over, upside down. “What’s up?”

“Yuuri and I came up with a name for you the other day!” Viktor declared, lifting Yuuri’s hand.

“Oh?” Chris asked, winking. “Was I the subject of conversation last night? If I had known that, I wouldn’t have left you two alone so quickly.”

Yuuri rolled his eyes. “Philautia,” he said, simply.

Chris cocked his head slightly to the side. “Philautia,” he repeated, curious. “What’s that mean?”

“All our names would come from the different types of love according to the ancient Greeks, in our world,” Viktor explained. “Eros is sexual or romantic love, and agape is unconditional love.”

“Philautia is self-love,” Yuuri added, smiling wryly. “We thought it was fitting for you, Chris.”

Chris grinned, nodding. He seemed pleased with the nickname.

“What’s mine mean?” Yurio asked, curious. “Storge?”

“Familial love,” Viktor answered, smiling serenely. “Like the love between children and parents, between siblings.”

“Did you come up with names for Seung-gil and Phichit?” Chris asked, eagerly.

“We thought Ludus, for Phichit,” Yuuri explained, holding up one finger. “It means playful love.”

“And philia for Seung-gil,” Viktor finished. “It means affectionate love, like friendship. Between  _ equals _ .”

Yurio sighed, but he seemed to give up trying to argue. “I think they’ll both like it,” he finally admitted, grudgingly.

* * *

“Welcome to the Eastern Federation,” Emil said, smiling a little coldly.

Viktor smiled back. “Thank you for such a…” he glanced around them, clearly eyeing the two rows of Warbeasts that had been lined up upon their arrivals. “…. warm welcome.”

They entered the building and took the elevator again to the same meeting room they had been in when Viktor and Yuuri had first challenged the Warbeasts. This time, however, the trip was done in silence.

“Please stay here until the game begins,” Emil finally spoke up again.

“Make sure you let the audience in,” Yuuri said, arms crossed over his chest.

Emil nodded simply, disappearing into the darkened hall and leaving them in the meeting room.

“How are you feeling, darling?” Viktor murmured, looking at Yuuri.

“I’m good.”

“How about you, Chris?” Viktor looked up at where Chris was floating midair.

Chris smirked, bowing his head slightly. “Flügel are the ultimate weapons. How we feel is usually irrelevant, but I am ready. At your order, I shall give it my all.”

“Yurio?” he asked, gently.

Yurio swallowed. He looked scarily pale, and his hands were clenched into fists. “I’m fine,” he said, shortly.

“You’re gonna be great,” Yuuri said, softly.

“By the way,” Viktor said, causing Yurio to look up, “do you remember there’s still some favors I have left over from that day you kept challenging me?”

Yurio grimaced, but it seemed to be a welcome distraction from his own nerves. “Yeah.”

“Chris, can you keep the Warbeasts from hearing what goes on in here?” he asked, eyes not leaving Yurio.

“Yes,” Chris said, nodding. He held his arms up, causing a seal to glow brightly in the air above them. “I can cover you in spirits to keep the sound from getting out.”

Viktor grinned, draping an arm around Yuuri’s shoulders. “Okay, Yurio, I’m going to give you a special demand.”

Yurio grimaced. “Why do I have a bad feeling about this?”

* * *

The stadium was full of more people than Viktor had ever seen before. It was packed full of Imanity and Warbeasts alike, all roaring and cheering for them. There were four giant screens at the very center, broadcasting the game for all the spectators.

They walked out onto the main stage to see five chairs in pods. Neither Viktor nor Yuuri were particularly fazed to see this, but Yurio and Chris exchanged confused glances.

“Everyone,” Emil said, turning to look at them. “Please sit here.”

Michele took the pod on the far-left side. Viktor took the one next to him, followed by Yuuri, Yurio, and Chris.

“This is insane,” Yurio muttered.

“Fascinating,” Chris murmured, examining the pods with a familiar glint in his eyes.

“Now then,” Emil projected, so that the audience could hear despite his words being aimed at the humans. “I shall confirm the contents of our pledges. The Federation bets everything it owns on the Lucia continent and Elchea bets its race piece. In order words, the lands, the possessions, the very rights of Imanity are on the line, in a game designated by the Eastern Federation between a Federation representative and the two rulers of Elchea, joined by their two attendants. The game will be held with these five players, one versus four.”

A pause. “Should the Eastern Federation win, it demands, as always, that all memories regarding the game be forgotten. This includes all players and Imanity viewing the game.” Emil stepped back to the smaller screen at waist height. “Rules will be explained once the game begins. Thus, should you refuse to play upon hearing the rules, the game will be voided and your memories erased.”

Emil leveled Viktor and Yuuri a severe look. “Are you truly fine with this?”

“Of course,” Yuuri said.

“No problem,” Viktor agreed. “But we want to make two things clear. Even if we default, all we’ll lose are the memories of today’s game, so if your goal is to make us drop out of an impossible game and steal any inconvenient memories, give up now.”

“Second,” Yuuri continued, “if we catch you cheating during the game, it means an immediate loss. So long as you don’t forget that, we’ll have no problem.”

“Very well. I’ll take that as your agreement, and ask that you all swear by the Pledges.”

“ _ Aschente! _ ”

“Ready for this, Mickey?” Viktor asked, giving his neighbor a friendly smile.

Michele scoffed, not responding. Instead, he kept his eyes focused on Emil, who was starting to set up the game at the screen. He clenched his fists tightly, causing Viktor to frown.

“Say, Mickey,” Viktor said.

“What do you want?” Michele huffed.

A brief pause, then, “When was the last time you thought a game was fun?”

This seemed to catch Michele’s attention. He looked over, a disturbed expression on his face. Before he could respond, however, the lights around the control panel began to glow.

“Are you ready?” Emil asked.

Viktor held out his hand toward Yuuri. “Don’t let go,” he said, mouth set in a determined line. Yuuri reached out as well, taking his, then reached out his other arm for Yurio.

“Huh?” Yurio asked, confused.

“We’re a team, Yurio,” Yuuri told him, smiling. “We do this together.

Yurio took his hand, and offered his other one to Chris. He grabbed it, surprisingly enough, with no further comments.

“Let’s begin the game.”

Viktor took one last look around. Emil’s ears suddenly twitched and his spine straightened. He didn’t let anything in his expression betray what he was thinking, but Viktor knew he had sensed Elf magic. He couldn’t help but smirk as he spotted the cause of Emil’s discomfort.

He was far away, but Viktor could make out the figure of Seung-gil standing in one of the archways. And where Seung-gil was, Phichit was surely close by as well.

They probably wouldn’t be able to directly interfere with the game, but even the fact that they were watching was hopefully enough of a deterrent against using obvious cheats. It must have rattled the Warbeast when Emil realized that they were working with an Elf.

Then, Viktor’s eyes slid shut.

* * *

“What is this?” Yurio asked, looking around frantically.

Viktor could make out the faces of his friends, but their bodies did not look fully corporeal. They looked like they were in an elevator again, but he couldn’t feel them moving.

“You asked me earlier,” Viktor said abruptly, “why we would make the people riot.”

Yurio looked at him, incredulous. “You’re bringing this up now?”

“We don’t need the trust of anyone who’s sure we can win,” Yuuri said, simply. “Imanity will be watching closely, because they think we’re in cahoots with the Federation and that this is just some kind of ploy. They want to make sure we aren’t losing deliberately. It’ll be harder for the Federation to use any obvious cheats, with so many eyes on us. Imanity doesn’t trust us, and there’s no more trusted observer than someone who suspects you.”

Yurio’s eyes widened. “That’s… crazy,” he said, breathlessly. “You’re using our own people to keep the Warbeasts in check.”

“That’s genius,” Chris corrected, grinning with delight.

“They’re probably still going to try to use their Warbeast abilities and various cheats that we’re not expecting to beat us and dupe the audience. So, in the end, victory will be determined solely by how we react to the expected and unexpected,” Viktor concluded.

Suddenly, one of the walls was disappearing, letting in sunlight. “As well as how quickly we incorporate those into our strategies.”

The box disappeared, revealing tall skyscrapers and brightly colored signs and pictures. They were standing on top of a truck, parked on the corner of a four-way intersection. The streets were empty and there was no sign of life, but it was unmistakable.

They were in Tokyo.

“Where are we?” Yurio asked, confusedly looking around.

“An illusionary world I’ve never seen or heard of before?” Chris sounded amazed. “Viktor, Yuuri, do you guys-“

“Yes,” Yuuri said, softly. “We know where this is.”

“Well?” Yurio asked, impatiently.

“We’re in Tokyo,” Viktor said, distantly. He looked around, stunned at the similarity to the city he had lived in for almost a decade.

Chris and Yurio exchanged looks of shock.

“This…” Yurio looked around, taking in the stage with a new critical eye. “This is where you’re from?”

A screen appeared, showing an intro video to the video game.  _ “You were incredibly popular, so popular that girls from all around the world chased you! But in your heart, there was only one woman you loved…” _

Yuuri frowned while Viktor snickered.

“But I’m gay.”

“And I’m in love with the most wonderful man ever.”

“Shh!” Yurio snapped. “I’m trying to listen.”

_ “However, even your love can waver if faced with too many temptations.” _

“Never!” Viktor gasped, throwing his arms around Yuuri overdramatically. His husband rolled his eyes, putting his finger to his lips in a shushing motion.

_ “Can you survive the snare of seduction and convey your feelings to the one you love? Living or Dead Series Side Story: Love or Loved 2! Get her with your Bullet of Love!” _

The following music video sequence was certainly not the strangest thing Viktor’s ever seen, but it was definitely near the top of his list.

“And I thought the video games back home were weird,” Yuuri murmured.

The screen disappeared, instead showing the face of Emil. “Welcome to the world within the game. The match will be held inside this VR field.”

“A virtual reality…” Viktor said, looking around in amazement. “They somehow managed to imagine the entirety of Japan?”

“Allow me to explain the rules,” Emil began. “First, look at the box at your feet. You will use those guns against the NPCs who chase you and shoot them.”

“That’s awfully violent,” Chris muttered, picking up the hairdryer-looking gun out of the case.

“At times shooting them, at times blowing them up… You will make them fall in love with you. Girls who are smitten with you will give you their love strength and disappear. The Lovey-Dovey Gun shoots out Love Power. If Mickey shoots one of you, you will fall in love with him and change sides! The goal of the game is to shoot him before he shoots all of you.”

“Basically, I have to reject every girl I see?” Viktor clarified. “Sounds easy enough.”

“Been doing it my whole life,” Yuuri confirmed.

“One last thing,” Emil added, “magic cannot be used in the virtual world, which includes flying. Though, if you fall, you won’t actually be damaged. Do you need any further explanation?”

Viktor shook his head. “Nah, we’re good, we’ll figure it out as we play.” Then, wordlessly, he shot at a girl climbing up the side of the truck near Yurio, who jumped.

“I didn’t even hear her coming!” Yurio sputtered, reaching immediately for a gun.

“Let’s get some practice in before Mickey finds us, hmm?” Yuuri suggested, holding up his gun and jumping off the truck.

_ Firing the gun depletes the love power, _ Viktor noted, while taking aim and shooting the NPCs with perfect accuracy.  _ Hitting NPCs restores the love power. _

“Being touched by an NPC depletes your love power too,” Yuuri said, running up to him. He gestured to Yurio, who was screaming and being smothered by a group of NPCs. Very quickly, they became bored and walked off.

“And it looks like if it runs out, they stop approaching,” Viktor said. “But you’ll run out of energy to fire the gun and be unable to continue shooting.”

They were suddenly overwhelmed by a group of NPCs.

“This way,” Viktor called, running down a street. “Say, what happens if there’s friendly fire?”

They ducked into an alley, as the NPCs ran past. A screen with Emil’s face appeared in front of them.

“You can restore love power to an ally who has run out,” he explained. “It will also save a companion who has been shot by Mickey. However, the person shot temporarily becomes obsessed with the shooter-“

Emil hadn’t even finished the sentence before Viktor was aiming the gun at Yuuri's back and firing. The force of the shot sent him stumbling forward, crying out in surprise.

“That was cold, Viktor,” Chris said, looking both appreciative and taken aback.

Yuuri blinked a couple times, and looked at Viktor with a frown. “What was that for?” he complained. “I’ll make you sleep on the floor tonight if you do that again!”

“Huh?!” seemed to be everyone’s response.

“It didn’t work,” Viktor said, looking down at his gun in disappointment.

“Well, you shouldn’t-“ Yuuri began, annoyed, only for Chris to shoot him in the side. He blinked a few times, then his face lit up, a dopey smile growing on his face. “Chris, how could I have never noticed how beautiful you were? I love you!”

He made a move to throw himself over Chris, who was grinning evilly, but Viktor caught him by the collar of his shirt and shot him again. Yuuri blinked a few times, confused, then scowled.

“Chris, we’re gonna have words about this later,” he said, threateningly, wrapping himself around Viktor apologetically.

Chris pouted. “Sorry,” he said, not at all sounding sorry. “I was just curious!”

“Ugh, maybe I don’t want to have my power restored,” Yurio said, disgusted. “Especially if I end up looking like an idiot like katsu- ACK!”

Yuuri shot him quickly, holding his head an arm’s length away when he immediately started trying to tackle him into a hug. His power restored, it only took a few more moments for him to blink and halt his attempts to hug, face flooding with embarrassment.

“Does everyone understand the rules so far?” Viktor asked, earning several nods.

“Is there rebound?” Yuuri asked, taking aim and firing. The shot hit the ground and ricocheted several times until it hit an NPC turning the corner. “Well, there’s my answer.”

Viktor grinned. “Does that change things?” he asked, already knowing the answer.

“Of course,” Yuuri said, already deep in concentration making calculations in his head. “Leave it to me.”

Viktor nodded. “Even though we’re in a game, our stamina isn’t much different from real life, so you should keep your running to a minimum.”

Yuuri raised an eyebrow. “Oh,” he deadpanned, “that’s a change. You’re telling me that my stamina is a problem now, but you didn’t seem to be complaining last night.”

Chris guffawed while Yurio groaned, making a noise of disgust.

“The entirety of Imanity is watching!” he shouted, horrified. “Do you two have any shame at all?!”

Viktor’s face was burning in embarrassment.

“Yuuri!” he complained, burying his face in his hands. His husband could be so mean when he wanted to.

Yuuri chuckled, pecking him lightly on the lips before stepping back, gripping the gun in his hands. “Let’s split up, everyone!”


	11. Chapter 11 - Yuuri

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri puts a lot of pressure on himself, but he's confident in knowing that Viktor will always have his back.

Yuuri hadn’t felt like he had been completely in his element in a long time.

He’d be the first to admit that politics and public speaking weren’t his thing, usually leaving most of the grand speeches and intimidation tactics to Viktor, who was far more charismatic and well-spoken. Viktor, who, despite his avoidance of people for most of his adult life, had a way with words, a way to rally his allies and motivate them to accomplish their goals. The sweet-talker who had charmed Yuuri, even when he had turned his back on the rest of the world. At the end of the day, Viktor's skills lay in _people_.

But this game, _this_ was Yuuri’s element.

He ran down an alley after separating from the group to recon the area, pivoting on his heels to turn sharply and fire. Before it even hit its target, Yuuri knew he had miscalculated, underestimating how fast the NPC was running. Then, to his surprise, the shot skidded past the NPC’s hip, causing the cloth to disappear.

“You’ve gotta be kidding,” Yuuri muttered, a little incredulous. Then, his eyes narrowed as he spotted the NPC’s glasses. _I wonder…_

Yuuri took aim, eyes narrowing as he locked onto his target, muttering calculations to himself under his breath. “Max thickness: 3 millimeters. Direction: 12:00. Distance: 2-0-0-0-5-0. Firing angle: 93 degrees. Shot speed: 300 meters per second. Margin of error: 0.5 millimeters.” He held his breath, and fired.

Yuuri lowered his gun, as the glasses on the NPC’s face disappeared. He smirked, satisfied, and fired off one more shot, hitting the NPC right in the head.

 _Interesting_ , Yuuri mused, turning to continue walking. _I’ll have to remember to tell Viktor about that mechanic…_

* * *

With no sightings of Michele, the group met up at the intersection where they had begun the game.

“Viktor,” Yuuri requested, “I need you to shoot me.”

“I thought we already established that it doesn't work,” Viktor said, but raised his gun, ready to shoot nonetheless.

“Yeah, because you two are already grossly in love and obsessed with one another,” Yurio added, rolling his eyes.

“Just do it,” Yuuri ordered, lifting his weapon to take aim. Viktor shrugged and fired, and Yuuri pulled the trigger. The bullets collided midair and bounced back, in the direction of both shooters. Yuuri back-stepped, having anticipated this, while Viktor was hit square in the chest.

Viktor blinked. “What was that for?” he asked, confused.

Yuuri waved him aside. “Just curious."

 _So_ , Yuuri thought, mind racing, _our shots ricochet off of one another. That'll be useful later on_. 

“I can’t tell if that didn’t work because it was Yuuri’s bullet that hit him,” Chris said, equally confused, “or if it didn’t work because it was his own bullet and he’s already infatuated with himself.”

They managed to track Michele to the top of a skyscraper. Chris would wait at the roof, Viktor would be far away, which worked both as a preventative measure and to test just how far the Warbeasts’ senses stretched, and Yurio would be waiting at the ground. Yuuri, meanwhile, would be on the offensive and directly engage Michele in combat, taking the opportunity to gain a sense of his abilities while they could still take him by surprise.

"Will you be okay?" Yurio had asked, eyeing him warily.

Yuuri had merely smiled. "Oh, Yurio," he chirped, raising his gun with a glint of manic glee entering his eyes. Yurio had taken a step back, looking suddenly nervous at the look on his face. "I'll be just fine."

Yuuri skidded to a stop in the hall, staring at the door at the other end of it. _Right there_ , Yuuri thought. According to his own mental map of the building, Michele should be there, and he could probably have sensed Yuuri coming from a mile away. With that, Yuuri broke out into a dead sprint down the hall.

 _3, 2, 1!_ Yuuri fired his weapon at a ninety-degree angle behind him, his bullet bouncing back and making direct contact with another shot.

Yuuri smirked, continuing on his run. _It’ll take Michele another three seconds before he realizes he didn’t hit me, another two before he fires his weapon again, which means…_ Yuuri fired again, and once again, their ricocheting bullets made impact, canceling each other out.

 _Viktor was always a better people-person than me. He knows what makes them tick, what they want, and how to get them to do what he wants_ , Yuuri thought. _It's what made him a great chess player, what makes him a great gamer, and most of all, what makes him a great king. But…_

Yuuri skidded to a stop, taking aim and firing through the open window of the door.

 _He’s not the one who holds all the records in FPS,_ Yuuri thought, a smirk growing on his face. _I am_.

He knew it wouldn’t meet its target, not unless he was incredibly lucky. Yuuri fired again, and the strangled cry of surprise from Michele inside the room told him it had collided with one of his shots. He burst into the room, weapon raised and poised.

_I love Viktor, but he doesn’t have my ability to calculate our enemy’s movements in a split second, to take into account both movement patterns and firing speeds._

Yuuri ran past the aisles, emerging on the other side. Michele stepped out and fired three times. Yuuri’s eyes tracked the angle of the firing and their speed, and simply stopped in his tracks, turning his body thirty degrees to the right. The shots ricocheted right beside him, not coming closer than an inch away.

Yuuri looked back at him and raised his gun, smirking as he fired off several rounds. Michele’s eyes widened and he immediately took off in the opposite direction.

“This is fucking ridiculous!” Yuuri heard the Warbeast mutter, clearly panicked. Michele reached the other end of the room and crashed through the window, narrowly dodging the other shots.

Yuuri’s heart was racing in excitement, his face flushed. He hadn’t missed a shot in so long; this was probably the most fun he had playing an FPS in literal years. Then, Yuuri rushed after the Warbeast, peeking outside the window. Chris was falling as well, right after Michele.

“Hi, Mickey!” Chris crooned, holding his gun directly below. Yuuri could see him fire off a shot, which was quickly countered by a love grenade from Michele. Chris was flapping his wings, to no avail.

Yuuri sighed, shaking his head; Chris must have forgotten he couldn’t use magic in the game. It was part of the reason why Yuuri had not been particularly upset to learn that Imanity had no potential to use magic. While it could be a major advantage, it also made their enemies weak if they no longer had it as a crutch to lean on.

The fog had disappeared to reveal Michele running up the side of the building before turning suddenly and firing directly at Chris.

A bullet far in the distance came out of nowhere and hit Chris. A second was aimed right at Michele, with no way to dodge. He swiveled suddenly, in midair, causing the bullet to hit his robes and allow him to fall to the ground, unharmed, though now missing an article of clothing.

“Damn,” Yuuri murmured, sighing in exasperation as he leaned against the wall next to the broken window. “Well, that would’ve been too easy, I suppose.”

* * *

Yuuri took the elevator down this time, meeting up with Viktor, Yurio, and Chris at the rendezvous point.

Viktor turned to Yuuri with a frown. “Are you alright, love?”

Yuuri nodded, slumping to the ground and leaning his head against Viktor’s shoulder. He wasn’t tired yet, but it would do well to rest while they had time to breathe. “Well, we’ve at least learned the extent of his capabilities,” Yuuri said.

“He sensed and dodged your shot before it was even fired,” Yurio grumped. “And you were a half mile away.”

“It’s not a sixth sense,” Viktor said, grimly. “It’s precognition.”

“A cheat, that you can’t prove,” Chris concluded, frowning. Yuuri opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by part of the roof caving in. Michele was falling right through and landing on his feet all the while firing his gun several times right at Yuuri. Chris threw themselves in front of him, taking the brunt of the shots.

“Shit,” Yurio grunted, scrambling to lift his gun and fire. They managed to shoot Chris again and chase Michele off, who had clearly not expected Yuuri to have enough energy to fight back.

They spent the next hour or so playing a cat and mouse game across the city until the sky became dark and they found themselves in a small park, hiding out for the time being.

“So now we’re on the defensive, huh?” Chris sighed. He was a little winded, leaning against a tree with his weapon ready to fire. Viktor stood on the other side of the park, also ready to defend.

Yuuri was sitting on the ground, scribbling equations quickly on the ground with a stick before the numbers escaped him. He could probably do it in his head, but there was no room for error here. He had to be sure his math was perfect.

“I hoped that we could finish this at the start, so now we’ll have to wing it,” Viktor complained.

Yurio scoffed, loudly frowned. “Wing it? We’re trying to play a fair game against cheaters who know this game inside and out!”

They spent the next few minutes casually shooting NPCs who got too close. Yuuri tried to block out any outside sounds, focused solely on his plans.

“Are you making any progress on our next strategy?” Chris asked, shooting another NPC casually.

“Chris, I mean this as nicely as possible when I say shut up,” Yuuri said, distractedly.

Yurio groaned, looking around the park ground filled with Yuuri’s near incomprehensible scribbles, a mix of Japanese, English, Russian, and numbers. “This might be impossible,” he muttered, defeated. “Even for Yuuri.”

Yuuri felt his heart twist at his words, but he continued writing. 

_Focus_ , he scolded himself, forcing his attention back on the numbers. There was a certain comfort to it, a simplicity in the black-and-white of equations. They were predictable, but humans weren't. Numbers were all about impossibilities and inevitabilities, humans were about "maybe"'s and "might be"'s. 

Viktor though, Yuuri decided, was the one exception to that rule. Confident, unfaltering Viktor. They never lost, because it was an impossibility, with Viktor. They always won, because it was an inevitability, with Viktor. There were no if's, and's, or but's.

Viktor spoke up, distracting Yuuri once again.

“No,” Viktor denied, shaking his head. “If there’s something I can’t do in a game, Yuuri can. That’s how we work.”

A lump grew in Yuuri’s throat, his heart clenching.

 _With Viktor, this game was won before it had ever even started_ , Yuuri thought. _God, I love you so much._

He took a deep breath.

“Viktor?” he asked, softly, catching everyone’s attention. He looked up at Viktor with hesitance. “Do you believe in me?”

Viktor blinked in surprise at the sudden and seemingly random question, then smiled a little bit. “Have I been such a poor husband that I’ve let you think I would ever doubt you?” he teased. “Of course I believe in you, Yuuri Katsuki.” He reached out, taking Yuuri's free hand in his, and placing a gentle kiss on his ring.

Yuuri nodded once, looking back down at his equation. It was nearly done. He added an equal sign at the end of it, then a little heart to finish the equation, before dropping his stick on the ground and letting go of Viktor's hand. “Then, Viktor…” He stood up, mouth set in a grimace. “It’s your turn now, okay?”

Viktor's eyebrows furrowed together, lines of worry and confusion creasing his forehead. “What?”

Their time was up.

There was a flash from just over Viktor’s shoulder and the noise of a trigger being pulled. Yuuri jumped into action, throwing himself into the line of fire and letting the bullet hit him square in the face instead of its intended target, Viktor.


	12. Chapter 12 - Viktor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's up to Viktor to win them the game.  
> They may or may not be screwed.

“Yuuri!” Viktor cried out, but wasn’t given any time to even try to take aim when there were suddenly bullets raining down over them. He jumped out of the way, rolling onto his feet to lift his gun and aim it at Yuuri, who had already somehow recovered and was also pointing his gun right at Viktor.

There was a long moment of silence as the two aimed at each other, tension thick in the air.

Yuuri gave him a cocky smile. If it weren’t for the context of it, Viktor normally loved his husband acting so confident. Right now was maybe not the most opportune time.

“Darling,” Yuuri purred. “No hard feelings.” Then, he fired.

Viktor pulled the trigger, letting their shots meet in the middle and ricochet off each other. Chris and Yurio both fired a few shots, but Yuuri easily dodged them. It gave them enough time to run, though, and when Viktor looked back, he knew Yuuri wasn’t following them.

“It’s over then,” Yurio said, breathless. “He’s got Katsudon on his side now.” They were standing at the top of a bridge above a street.

“No offense, but why would Yuuri chose to protect you?” Chris asked. “He knows he’s better than all of us. I don’t understand why he would take the shot meant for you.”

“I do,” Viktor said, face dark. “That _was_ the answer. He drew a heart. Love, us. Everything, including Yuuri joining the enemy’s side, is Love’s power. In other words, it’s up to me to complete the solution that will lead us to victory.”

A pregnant pause. Chris and Yurio looked a little doubtful, but what other choice did they have? Viktor steeled his nerves and carefully schooled his features; it wouldn’t do well to show Chris and Yurio just how panicked he felt, and it certainly wouldn’t inspire any confidence in the rest of Imanity watching. 

“Chris, Yurio, I need you to fight Mickey to keep him distracted and buy us more time,” Viktor said.

Yurio nodded, scowling. “I’ll break his neck for what he did to Katsudon,” he promised, growling a little bit.

“Famous last words, there,” Chris said, grimly. “But I agree. Let’s go.”

They had barely jumped into the streets when Michele caught up with them. Viktor watched, cautiously, ready to engage if necessary, but his focus was on watching his own back. Yuuri would be around here, Viktor thought. He knew Viktor better than anyone. That, combined with just his genius, strategic brain, meant that Yuuri would know exactly where Viktor would go when backed into a corner. This did not bode well for Viktor.

“I’ve got this,” Viktor heard Yurio growl while firing off several rounds. Michele jumped back, easily dodging the bullets with the grace of a dancer.

“You missed,” Chris told him, scowling. “Let me do the shooting, won’t you, silly kitten?”

Yurio’s head snapped over to him. “Listen here, buddy-“ he began, only for Chris to roll his eyes and shoot him once, knocking the teenager over in a daze. Viktor winced in sympathy.

Chris picked him up like he was a rag doll and threw him promptly in the arms of a passing NPC before jumping up and back into action.

“Now that the kids have gone to bed,” Chris called out, “Why don’t we play a game, Mickey? "

Viktor could see Michele snarl, his hands tightening over his gun.

Chris's smile turned sharp and dangerous. "The last time I played against the Eastern Federation, were you my opponent too?” He cocked his head to the side a bit, eyes shining in something akin to excitement and murder. Viktor had never seen that particular look on him, but he wasn't terribly surprised that Chris seemed to have been holding a grudge about losing to the Eastern Federation before. The Flügel were, after all, prideful above all else.

Michele didn't respond, but it was clearly an answer in and of itself.

The last Viktor saw of them was a stream of bullets, when he suddenly became far more preoccupied by a hailstorm of pink coming his way. He leapt to the side, rolling to his feet with his gun raised. 

“No need to run, darling,” Yuuri said, with a grin as he rounded the corner. “You’re just putting off the inevitable.

“Shit,” Viktor cursed, firing back a couple times and running into the closest building.

 _I shouldn’t be surprised,_ he thought, running from another onslaught of bullets. _Of course he managed to track me down this quickly._

Another shot just barely missed his feet if he hadn’t jumped, tucking and rolling to take cover behind a pillar. He leaned against it, gasping for breath. Then, he ducked to avoid a bullet ricocheting right at him.

 _This is useless!_ he thought, taking off into a dead sprint. _Being in a different area isn’t going to change things. What is it that you think only I can do, Yuuri? Why leave this up to me?_

Viktor was taking the stairs up two at a time, but he was quickly running on energy. He leaned against the stairs, breathlessly. _I need to get to the roof, but he’s planned for that too. He plans for everything. But either way, he’ll catch up to me soon enough._

Suddenly, something clicked.

Yuuri hadn’t been running after him. Viktor closed his eyes; he could hear Yuuri’s soft, slow footsteps.

_If he ran, he’d have any number of chances to beat me. His stamina’s much better than mine, he could over take me in a heartbeat._

Then, Viktor remembered.

_“Even though we’re in a game, our stamina isn’t much different from real life, so you should keep your running to a minimum.”_

A slow smile spread on Viktor’s face. He pulled himself onto his feet and managed to continue climbing. _I’m the one who said that. And even though Yuuri’s stamina is much better than mine, he’s walking right now._

Viktor reached the top of the stairs, laughing quietly to himself. “If I’ve read things wrong, this is the end,” he mused. “But, well… what a way to go."

He kicked open the door and waited for Yuuri to find him on the roof.

It didn’t take long for Yuuri to reach the roof, immediately firing off several shots that Viktor barely dodged. He leaned against the gating on the edge of the building, gasping for breath as he stared Yuuri down.

“Okay, Yuuri, I’ve just about had it,” he wheezed. “Please let me know how you have that stamina of yours; this is a rough game for a guy who never leaves his room.”

Yuuri merely cocked an eyebrow at him from the other side of the roof. He was giving him a moment to breathe, at least. Viktor looked down at the gun in his hands, swallowing dryly. _There’s no room for a misstep here_.

Yuuri raised his gun at him, and Viktor immediately charged forward. He fired off several rounds, but Viktor kept running.

_Yuuri, I know you, more than I know myself. If there’s something you’d never expect it’s that…_

Yuuri’s eyes widened, the bullets flying right past Viktor. He kept running, grabbing a stunned Yuuri into a tight bear hug and sending them both flying off the edge of the building.

“You didn’t expect I wouldn’t even try to dodge, right?” Viktor laughed, took aim, and fired.

Yuuri’s eyes met his, wide and full of adoration. “Viktor, I love you!” he cried out, as they plummeted head first to the ground. His hands tightened around Viktor’s waist, burying his face into his chest.

“I love you too,” Viktor murmured, kissing the top of his head.

Viktor didn’t look up. There was the sound of a smoke bomb going off behind him. Yuuri pulled back a bit, twisting them so that he was lifting his gun and aiming it directly above them. He fired once, knocking the gun out of Michele’s hands, who was falling midair just a few meters above Viktor and Yuuri.

“This is why you saved your strength and didn’t run, right, Yuuri?” Viktor asked, smirking at Michele’s stunned face.

“You know me, Vitya,” Yuuri said, with a grin. “I’ve always loved you. I don’t need some Lovey-Dovey gun to be crazy about you.”

A look of horror passed over Michele’s face. “Impossible!” he shouted. “You’re not affected by his shot?”

“You finally figured it out?” Viktor asked. “Yuuri was never on your side. He let the shot hit his glasses in the park.”

Chris was above them, falling several meters above a still stunned looking Michele. His eyes were glazed over bright red, having clearly lost against Michele. He took aim at Viktor and Yuuri, who were right below him. Chris and Yuuri fired at the same time, the bullets hitting one another and one of them falling right back down to the streets.

Then, something changed. 

Viktor felt the hairs on his arms and the back of his neck stand up straight. Michele let out a laugh, and suddenly his eyes glowed red. Red markings appeared on his face, arms, and legs. His auburn hair and fur turned blood red, and his teeth grew into points.

“Interesting!” he snarled, grinning wildly.

Viktor felt his heart sink. _Oh no_.

Michele shot a hand down. The force of it caused every window nearby to shatter instantly. Michele was a blur of red, jumping back and forth between buildings.

“Is he double jumping?” Yuuri cried. 

“Cheater!” Viktor shouted, firing off another shot, but Michele was moving so fast, he couldn’t even be sure it wasn’t teleporting. Michele was suddenly much closer, shooting at them twice.

Viktor kicked off his shoes, absorbing the two shots. He and Yuuri hit the ground safely, though Viktor felt disoriented as his back slammed against the concrete road.

“Move!” Yuuri shouted, hauling Viktor up to his feet and running out of the way. Not a moment too soon, with Michele landing right where they had been lying. Michele looked like a man- or Warbeast- possessed, eyes slit like a cat’s and a red glow emanating off of his very being. Red lightning crackled around him.

“I won’t lose!” Michele roared, still grinning ferally.

“That should be impossible!” Yuuri shouted, tugging Viktor along by the hand as they sprinted down an alleyway. It felt like they were being hunted like animals.

Suddenly, Michele was above them midair, firing down at them. They skidded to a stop and rushed to turn down another alley, only for Michele to appear in front of them, blocking their path. Before Viktor could even lift his weapon, he was gone again.

Yuuri’s head snapped back and he fired, narrowly missing a red blur.

“This is insane!” Viktor shouted, pulling Yuuri down the steps into a tunnel.

“I can’t read his movements,” Yuuri said, panicked.

“Beyond physical limits, huh,” Viktor panted. “This is their real cheat!”

They were back at the truck where they had begun, standing back to back with their weapons raised. Viktor was panting heavily, and he could hear even Yuuri’s labored breathing.

“I’d expected this to a certain extent,” Viktor said, “but I never imagined all this.”

“I can’t calculate the variables,” Yuuri breathed, shakily.

“He’s beyond physical limitations,” Viktor responded. “Equations won’t help you.”

“Viktor…”

A thud. Michele landed several feet away from Viktor. Yuuri turned, aiming his weapon at Michele as well.

Viktor’s jaw set with determination. “Let me handle this one,” he said, charging forward with his gun raised. As expected, Michele fired off two shots.

 _With this kind of speed, he’ll predict that I’ll dodge and go for both sides_. He kept running, the two bullets whizzing by his ears harmlessly. _Once he decides I won’t dodge, he’ll fire down the middle!_

Viktor fired once, neutralizing the bullet from Michele’s weapon. Before he could pull the trigger again, there was another bullet flying right at him. The bullet that flew past his left side ricocheted off the building and was suddenly aimed right at where Yuuri was standing.

_No!_

They were both knocked back, hit in the head at the same time.

Viktor looked up at the sky dazed, his mind a jumble.

“I won!” Michele was gasping, sounding relieved and shocked. “I won! I did it! I-“

The sound of another shot going off.

Viktor blinked a few times, his mind clearing suddenly. Then, he grinned as silence reigned.

He sat up in time to see Michele fall to the ground, revealing Yurio, being held by an NPC, with his gun raised and pointed right at where Michele had been standing.

“Game over,” Yurio said, grinning.

Yuuri sat up. “Looks like it worked, then.”

“Sure does,” Viktor said, grinning. He looked back at his husband, and they broke into a fit of laughter. Viktor stood, holding his hand out to his still giggling husband. Yuuri took it, draping himself around Viktor with giddy excitement.

“Even if you have a sixth sense, you didn’t see that, did you?” Viktor asked, rhetorically.

Michele picked himself up gingerly, still sitting on the ground looking up at them. “H-how?” he whispered.

“When Yuuri bounced his shot off of Chris’s bullet, he wasn’t aiming for you. He was aiming for Yurio.”

“Who was being carried by one of the NPCs on the street below,” Yuuri finished, with a sly smile. “NPC movement is controlled by a set of rules, unchanging. They can be easily predicted.”

“They also don’t make noise when they walk,” Viktor added. “Since Yurio was unconscious, you couldn’t sense his desire to attack you, and you couldn’t detect him.”

“Before the game,” Yuuri said, “Viktor bound him by the Pledges to obey any order I wrote on the ground.”

_Yurio looked at the writing in Japanese, a language that Viktor and Yuuri had insisted he learn just in case, since no one else in Disboard knew the language, and read aloud, confused._

_“Once your Love Power is restored, wait until it is about to run out and then fire straight ahead?”_

“All we had to do was calculate the perfect place to restore Yurio’s Love Power and how long he could stand being drained by the NPCs until he could only fire once. Then, he would fire straight ahead at where we wanted to lure Michele to,” Viktor concluded.

“It’s kind of like seeing the future, isn’t it?” Yuuri asked, grinning. “I bet that’s what you’re thinking, huh, Emil?” he asked, projecting his voice to their invisible audience.

“My guess,” Viktor added, “is that you’ve been monitoring our heartbeats and telling Michele where we were, am I right? You led him right to where we wanted him to be. There’s only two actions you can take in a game…”

“Advance your own strategy,” Yuuri finished, “Or respond to another player’s strategy. It’s a question of who has the initiative.” He gazed off into the distance, watching the sun rise.

“In this case, we had the initiative right from the start,” Viktor said with a chuckle, wrapping an arm around Yuuri and Yurio. “You thought you were the one making the moves, but really, you were only being moved. It wasn’t precognition; the result was inevitable.”

“The weak have their own way of fighting,” Yurio spoke up, eyes hard. “We leave it to the strong to fight each other head-on.”

Michele curled up, drawing his knees close to his chest and bowing his head in defeat.

Chris appeared at their side, grinning. “Hope I didn’t miss anything, boys?”

Viktor winked. “Not yet,” he promised, then projected his voice. “Now then! Can we get a declaration of victory?”

Emil’s trembling voice appeared, echoing through the streets of the virtual reality world. “The winner… is Elchea. In accordance to the Pledges, the Eastern Federation relinquishes all its rights on the continent to the Kingdom Elchea.”

They could hear the cheers of Imanity, the crowds roaring in the stadium.

“Nice job everyone,” Viktor said, grinning at them. “Everything went according to plan. And you two, very convincing actors.”

Chris grinned while Yurio smirked. “Much obliged!”

“There are a lot of other ways to knock me out, though,” Yurio complained, with a huff.

“I… I lost,” Michele said, from the ground. He was staring at his hands in shock. “And now, the Eastern Federation… the Warbeasts.” Tears were gathering in his eyes. His fists tightened as he stared at the ground desperately.

“That’s not just it, is it, Mickey?” Viktor asked. “You had fun playing, so now you’re confused, because even though you lost, you had fun. Right?”

“I don’t understand,” Michele whispered. “So many of my people will suffer now, because I lost. I couldn’t… I couldn’t have enjoyed myself.”

Yuuri blinked. “But you were smiling, weren’t you?” he asked.

Michele’s hands shook. “I don’t… the Federation will be taken over, and so many people will… and it’s all my fault, for having fun,” he choked out a sob.

“Don’t worry,” Viktor said, gently. “No matter what you think, we would’ve won anyways.”

Yuuri nudged him. “Don’t say it like that, you’re not helping!” he said, as they watched Michele’s face crumble.

“No one’s going to suffer,” Yurio said, rolling his eyes. “Now, quit being a drama queen and pull yourself together.”

“What?”

“These two don’t have the balls to hurt anyone,” Chris said, cheerfully.

“It’s okay to have fun,” Yuuri said, with a crooked smile. He held out a hand. “It’s just a game, after all.”

Michele stiffened at that. Viktor, for a moment, was afraid that Michele was going to blow his top. Instead, his eyes widened, and he looked up at Viktor and Yuuri as if he had provided all the answers in the universe. He grinned, pleased. Michele was much smarter than they had given him credit for.

Viktor also held out a hand, following his husband's example. “Once you understand that, you’re a friend of ours! Welcome, Mickey, you’re a gamer now.”

Michele blinked a few times, but his tears were dried. He took their hands, shakily. “Next time,” he said, softly, “I’m not going to lose.”

“I think you’ve got it, now,” Viktor said, pulling him to stand up. He clapped him on the back. “This world is just a game; no one here’s gotten that yet.”


End file.
